Demon Lord's Adventurers
by ZuttoAragi
Summary: On the final day of Yggdrasil, Diablo thought it would be the end of one adventure, and the start of another. Too bad he did not anticipate that being literal.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter I**

**Hello all! Yes, I know I have been gone for a _very_ long time. A lot of things have happened since my previous update. I have started a new job that takes a _vast_ amount of my time and energy, I have also taken in a new pet, which is its own hassle, and several other matters that have taken my time and my energy, leaving with little to sit down and read, watch, and/or play the fiction I use in many of stories, which then leaves me with a drought of ideas. That said, I have managed to find the time, the energy, and the mental space to come up with some ideas. I know, most of you are likely not happy it is just yet another new story, rather than an update to an existing one, but I only do this for fun, and especially so now that I have an actual job to worry about, so any time and energy I have for writing is going to be spent on what I feel like doing at the time. And for now, this is it.**

**Well, my excuses out of the way, I present to you Demon Lord's Adventurers! It is, as usual, a harem crossover. Primarily of DanMachi/Is it Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon and How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord, with my usual cavalcade of numerous shows and games thrown in. Main character is Diablo from Demon Lord, but as you will likely see he is really a combination of numerous characters.**

**So, without further adieu, let us dive right in!**

* * *

Inside of a large room with a long table surrounded by over forty chairs, a man with dark skin, red eyes, and short white hair with pointed black horns atop his head wearing a black and red, caped outfit, opened his eyes as he looked around. "Ahhh… it's nice to be back in. Kinda sad this'll be the last time, though. Right, Sinoula?"

Next to him, Sinoula, a beautiful woman with long, full, bright red hair and matching red eyes with large, golden horns atop her head, clad in a low-cut, black dress with red accents that left almost all of her voluptuous chest on full view, nodded with a smile. "Indeed, Momonga."

"So… it's finally over?" asked a third person in the room, a tall, cuttlefish-like being with grey flesh and numerous long tentacles, rolling a ball around its spot on the table with one of its appendages. "The server's going down and AOG stands undefeated, Momo?"

The man nodded in return. "Yes, Tabula Smaragdina. I checked while I was waiting for the two of you, and Ainz Ooal Gown is still Yggdrasil's number one guild by a rather large margin. We have one loss and three hundred, forty-five victories."

Tabula stopped playing with the ball and looked up. "Huh. I forgot we lost once."

Motioning through a menu that appeared in front of him, Momonga nodded. "I see. It was a long time ago, I suppose."

Sinoula nodded in agreement. "Yeah. I've even forgotten who it was against."

After a moment of quiet, Tabula just sighed heavily. "Who cares… all our history and achievements are gonna get deleted soon. Including my beloved Albedo…"

Momonga just shrugged. "They're just NPCs. I'm sure there'll be another VRMMORPG we can make them in."

Tabula angrily pointed at him with one of its tentacles and growled, "You will never understand the importance of Albedo!"

Momonga glowered and batted the tendril away. "Geez, don't wiggle those things at me, you pervert, I'm not into tentacle rape." He suddenly paled. "Wait… it's not because you use those things on –"

Tabula proceeded to immediately interrupt him with a powerful slap. "Pervert!"

"Gah! What the hell!?" Momonga grumbled as a green meter in his peripheral vision lost a small piece with a number appearing beside it momentarily.

"I'd never defile my Albedo like that!"

The duo's argument was interrupted by Sinoula's light laughter. "Surprisingly, I'm going to miss this. All of us here…"

Momonga sighed with a smile before nodding, then proceeded to look around the room in thought. "Are we really the only ones left?"

Tabula nodded in return. "Everyone else has logged out and deleted their characters."

"Damn…"

"Everything they owned is in the Vault. Think we can transfer it?"

Momonga just shrugged. "Only if we find a game using the same architecture. Other than that, though? Doubtful."

"Damn…" the squid-like being pouted.

"Well, we probably shouldn't just spend the last couple hours here in the war room. So let's explore."

Sinoula and Tabula nodded in agreement.

"Agreed," the redhead added.

Standing up, he turned to a piece of the wall at the back and pressed a space on it, causing it to open, revealing an incredibly tall, jagged, golden staff with numerous gems decorating its head. "Ahh… Our greatest achievement… The Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown. The forty-three of us spent countless hours collecting the necessary items, plans, and more to make this."

"It was quite the endeavor."

"Its crest is adorned with seven World-Class Items."

Nodding with a smile, Sinoula added, "I remember all the expeditions we went on to obtain those gems."

"Yeah… Fun times… and don't forget Tabula designing the staff itself."

Sinoula just chuckled lightly. "I thought she'd never stop."

"Yeah… wait, what?"

"What?"

Looking at Tabula, Momonga wondered, "You're a girl?"

Tabula tilted her head curiously. "Of course. You can't tell?"

Twitching an eyebrow, Momonga retorted, "No! You're a tentacle monster, you sound like a creature, and act like an old man!"

Sinoula just shrugged. "She's always acted that way."

Momonga sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm aware. I guess I never thought about what any of you were really like. It never mattered."

"I see…"

Without wasting a moment, Tabula pointed to Sinoula. "Siny is self-conscious about her arm fat."

Sinoula immediately began sputtering as she covered her upper arms. "N – Nan – Tabula!"

"What?"

"You promised you wouldn't talk about my flabby arms!"

"Now, now. You're the one that calls them flabby. They are pleasantly plump."

Sinoula shot her a cold glare. "Speak more and I'm cutting off your pudding supply."

Tabula suddenly made a monstrous cry that would send chills down the spine of a normal person. "You take that back!"

Momonga just watched in silent disbelief.

"You can't just try and take away my one true love!"

Momonga chuckled in amusement as he sighed before grabbing the Staff. "I suppose I should bring it with us."

* * *

As they proceeded through the halls of the massive structure, the three approached a group of several maids waiting in a row.

Momonga looked over them in thought. "Ah, the head security and maids. Let's see, what are they called again? Pleiades?"

"Yes," Sinoula replied.

Nodding, Momonga put a hand on his chin in thought. "Now, what was the command again? Oh, right. Okay. Pleiades, salute."

The maids proceeded to raise their right arms in a formal salute to himself and the others.

Tabula looked them over in thought, rubbing the top of its head with a tendril. "Okay… Yuri, Lupus – something, Nabe, Shizu, Solution, Anty."

Sinoula merely sighed.

"What?"

Pointing to each maid in sequence, she retorted, "Yuri Alpha," a pale-skinned woman with long black hair tied up in a bun with a frill, deep black eyes with round, frameless glasses hanging gently on her nose, wearing a long maid uniform, the bustier of which tightly held around her moderate bust, that had numerous plates of armor on one shoulder, her hips, and large, spiked gauntlets on her forearms.

"Lupusregina Beta," a tan-skinned woman with long, orange-red hair tied in two long braids that reached her thin waist, bright green eyes, wearing a black and gold maid uniform with detached sleeves, a black and white cap atop her head, hiding wolf-like ears underneath, a white slip over her torso that held firmly to her generous bust, a long slit up the side of her dress, exposing much of her long legs, slightly opaque stockings and black high-heeled shoes.

"Narberal Gamma," a young woman with dark grey eyes, straight-cut, black hair tied in a loose ponytail, wearing a heavily armored maid uniform, the breastplate of which still showed the shape of her firm bosom underneath, with a long string of plates down the fluffed skirt, and pointed, armored black boots.

"CZ2128 Delta," a fair-skinned woman with one, bright green eye exposed, the other covered with an eyepatch, long, wild, bright orange hair that reached down to her knees, wearing a heavily modified maid uniform, with her right arm, abdomen, and the sides of her skirt all covered in thick armor, and the usual white accents replaced with a green and brown, blotched, forest camouflage pattern.

"Solution Epsilon," an attractive young woman with short, mid-upper arm length, bright, golden blonde hair in large curls, seemingly empty blue eyes, and fair skin, wearing a very skimpy, French maid uniform that exposed a fair portion of her generous bust, nearly as full as Sinoula's, thigh-high armored boots, and long slits up the sides of her already short skirt.

"And lastly, Entoma Vasilissa Zeta," a petite girl with hard, almost bonelike, purple hair atop her head, a hard, motionless face with red eyes, and a simple, Japanese style maid uniform with long, dark red stockings.

Tabula nodded in understanding. "Ooooh… Boring. I like mine better."

"I don't care," Momonga retorted.

Tabula huffed, spitting a noxious fluid in the process. "Mean Momo."

A tic mark forming on his forehead, Momonga growled, "Stop spitting on everything dammit!"

Almost immediately, Narberal knelt down and began cleaning up the mess.

As they walked, Momonga stopped and turned to a single maid standing at the head of the line, waiting, the only one whose uniform resembled a standard maid with no armoring applied to it, her long black hair tied neatly under a cap with her deep black eyes hidden behind frameless round glasses, her bust neatly hidden under the layers of clothing, though still enough for the shape to be seen. "I forget… what was her name again?"

Sinoula answered, "Voulcosta Ultima."

He nodded as he looked at Ultima. "Right, thanks. Pleiades, follow."

The group followed behind as Momonga and the others walked into a massive hall with a throne at one end, and numerous flags hanging on the banisters above.

Tabula looked around in thought. "Ah… it's always nice here."

With a rather wry smile as she looked at the throne, Sinoula commented, "I have nice memories here," immediately causing Momonga to stiffen as his cheeks turned red.

Tabula just looked at her in confusion. "What do you mean?"

The two just stared in disbelief.

Coughing into his hand, Momonga redirected, "A – Anyway, let's head in. I'm sure Albedo's waiting."

"She always is," Tabula remarked as they approached.

A tall, beautiful woman with long, flowing, knee-length, lustrous, jet-black hair, a long strand falling between her golden amber eyes, which had vertically slit pupils, and at her waist were a pair of large, black, feathered wings, and she wore elbow-length white gloves, a low-hanging white dress that reached the floor, open portions that exposed her full hips, and a golden necklace modeled after a spider web that flowed over her extensive bust, waited by the throne.

"Beautiful…" Momonga remarked under his breath.

Sinoula hummed in thought, not having heard him.

"Nothing. Just admiring Albedo."

"Ah." With a playful pout, Sinoula retorted, "I'm hotter though… Aren't I…?"

"O – Of course," he stuttered lightly.

Tabula stared firmly at the two with suspicion.

"… A – Anyway…" he stammered before approaching the throne and sitting upon it, dropping the Staff as it floated off to the side. He just glanced at Albedo, who stood there quietly, before sighing, noticing the clock in the corner of his vision. "Geez… It's almost time…" Closing his eyes, he leaned back with a heavy sigh. '_I guess it'll be over in just a few minutes…_'

However, as he sat, he began to feel the ambient temperature in the room begin to change, before feeling something pressing against the sides of his face, gently. '_… The hell…?_' Opening his eyes, he immediately realized what it was, two people on either side of him, kissing his cheeks. … Eh? '_EEEHHH!? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?_'

"Yay!" cheered an energetic girl with long, flowing blonde hair and bright, blue-green eyes, long, pointed ears, adorned in rather simple clothing of a green tunic with gold accents and simple brown boots, though beyond anything, her most striking feature were the two, large, round orbs that were barely held in by her clothing as she hopped in excitement. "The summon worked! Way to go me!"

Momonga stared in disbelief. '_A – An Elf?_'

Next to her, a petite girl with wheat-shaded skin and long black hair wearing a simple outfit of black and purple, that left most of her lithe frame exposed, her most notable quality being the black, furry, feline ears atop her head and a matching tail just above her round rump, looked at the blonde in annoyance. "What? We both did it. I simply used your magic to do it. You don't have any real skill."

'_That girl… she's a Pantherian._'

The elf turned to the petite girl with a pout, her round chest swaying as she did. "Hey, I'm the one who cast the ritual!"

"We both did, stupid," the cat-eared girl snapped.

Momonga looked down as their argument continued, looking at his hands in front of him. '_This is… It can't really be… can it? Am I actually in Yggdrasil? It looks and sounds the same, but I can actually smell and feel the world around me. The ambient temperature, the soft breeze, the sweet scent in the air… It's amazing… and why the hell am I here and not the throne room?!_'

With a hiss, the Pantherian snapped back, "It was _my_ idea to come to the Starfall Tower. I simply used you as a mana pool. It's all those balloons on your chest are good for."

'_Starfall Tower? Isn't that where newbie Summoners try for their first Summon? Wait, does that mean these two SUMMONED me?! How the fuck?_' Momonga looked up in thought. "U – Um, excuse me…"

Their argument continued, the two seemingly unaware of his attempted interjection.

Groaning in frustration, Momonga scratched his head in confusion. '_… If it continues like this, I won't get a word in edgewise… I'm really not used to talking to girls… Even at work I normally stick to my desk and ignored everyone as best I could… how am I supposed to go with this?! Wait… Maybe I should act like my Character. Yeah… I was able to act as Momonga in front of Sinoula, and she's even better than that blonde. And then I was able to be the real me in front of her. So for now, I'll just _be_ him!_' Clearing his throat, Momonga summoned the most authoritative tone he could as he stood up. "Both of you, quit this pointless bickering."

The two girls froze in place and looked at him in disbelief.

"Th – The Summon talked?!" the buxom blonde exclaimed.

Momonga merely huffed in derision. "I am no Summon, fool. I am…" sweat began to drip down his face in concern. '_Crap, do I really want to call myself Momonga? I made that name when I was fifteen and thought it was cool… Okay, I need something new, something that sounds like a powerful demon, but not stupid… Ah, I've got it!_' Flaring his cape out with a vile grin, Momonga declared at full volume, "I am the True Demon Lord Diablo!"

"D – Diablo?" the elf shuddered slightly as she spoke the name.

Momonga, or rather, Diablo, gave himself a small smirk. '_Much better…_' "Yes. Now, quit your bickering and shake hands, with a smile."

The Pantherian hissed dismissively. "Who would shake hands with that fatty el –?" her voice suddenly cut out as her body began to twitch and stutter.

The elf's ears wiggled slightly in confusion before her body tensed as well.

The two began slowly, jerkily, moving towards each other, seemingly fighting their own bodies, as they grasped hands before twitching smiles appeared on their faces.

"Wh – What is… happening…?!" the cat-eared girl shrieked as she finally managed to break her handshake with the elf.

As if to answer her question, the duo's necks began to sparkle with flickers of light before bursting, resulting in large, round, heavy, iron collars with shackles appeared around their slender necks in a flash.

Diablo gaped in disbelief, but quickly collected himself to keep up his façade. "… You're both idiots."

"Wha – Wha – What the heck?!" the well-endowed elf shrieked as she tried to pull the collar off, her rack swaying with each motion.

Diablo glanced down at the ring on his right hand and nodded to himself before looking at the girls. "Yes, you both are, for trying to make a Demon Lord a Servant."

The elf gasped in disbelief. "Wait, the spell didn't work?!"

"I presume you used the Enslavement Ritual?"

The cat-eared girl frowned as she pawed at the collar, attempting, but failing, to remove it. "Yes…"

With a huff, Diablo "proudly" declared, "Then you're my new Servants, from your own stupidity."

The blessed elf stared in shock.

Continuing, Diablo added, "I have an ability that reflects all magic cast toward me back to its caster. So you ended up casting the Ritual on your stupid selves instead." '_Shiit!_' he silently cursed in his mind.

"What!?" the Pantherian exclaimed, almost in a hiss.

"I don't want to be enslaved to a Summon!" the elf moaned as she tried to pull the heavy collar off, the only effect being that it sent her sweater puppets swaying every which way.

Diablo took the red-gem-tipped staff in his hand and slammed its base against the ground, sending a loud clack through the air, shuttering the duo's complaints. "I am no Summon. I am The Demon Lord Diablo. Now… Done insulting me? If you are, then let's get moving."

"Moving? Where?" the blonde question.

"To find a city. To get those things off you."

The Pantherian stared at him, her catlike eyes filled with confusion.

"I have no need for slaves such as yourselves, so I plan to end our contract." '_That sounds good, but it's really that I'm not comfortable with the whole enslaving real people thing…_'

The cat-eared girl seemed to frown in disappointment. "… Right…" Pointing off in the distance, she explained, "We can reach Faltra if we head west for about fourteen kilomeders."

Diablo nodded in understanding. '_Okay… if memory serves, meders is the game's version of meters, so it's going to take a while to walk there…_' "Let's go."

* * *

After descending the massive tower, Diablo watched the two girls walk in front of him, before realizing a very important mistake. "Oy, you two."

"What?" the petite girl remarked, stopping to look at him.

"While our time together will be mercifully short, it would still be helpful to know your names, rather than to just refer to you as Pantherian and Elf."

"Rem Galleu," the cat-eared girl commented in an even tone that betrayed little emotion.

"My name's Shera L. Greenwood!" the elf answered excitedly as she turned on her heel.

Diablo had to gulp down his self-control as he watched her twins seemingly try to escape her top. "R – Right. Let's make short work of this travel."

* * *

Several hours passed before the trio finally reached a moderately sized city with a rather tall wall surrounding the outer edges.

Diablo tried to suppress a groan of fatigue. '_That walk was too damn long…! I actually get tired now that I'm here… Meaning my Stamina isn't just some meter, it's my actual stamina… Though I'm surprised I haven't encountered any monsters yet. It's weird…_'

The group easily got through the main gate and into the city.

However, as they walked, Diablo looked around in confusion. '_Pantherian, Elf, Dwarf, Prum, Grasswalker… Weren't humans the most abundant race? Or maybe… I'm near a Demi-Human settlement?_' "I'm not seeing many humans here."

Rem is the one who answered his question. "Faltra is a border city, humans don't come this far out very often."

"I see. Border to what?"

Shera looked at him in recognition. "Oh, you probably don't know, do you?"

Diablo attempted to shoot her an annoyed glare, but any contempt was instantly pacified by her assets. "Obviously. I have little need to pay attention to such minor details."

Taking the lead, Rem began to explain. "We are currently in the Re-Estize Kingdom."

Diablo merely nodded to confirm he was listening, so the black-haired girl continued.

"North of them is empire of Elcarium. To the east is the Lautreamont Knight Kingdom. To the south is the Shiga Kingdom. West is the Slane Theocracy. Shiga is fueled mostly by money, so just about anything, even life, can be bought and sold. Re-Estize and Lautreamont are currently engaged in a cold war against Elcarium, with a somewhat shaky treaty preventing outright hostilities. Thought Lautreamont isn't fond of Re-Estize either."

"Interesting," Diablo commented offhandedly as he parsed through the information.

Rem continued. "Faltra sits close to the southern border, and due to the somewhat lawless nature of Shiga, the border is often attacked by Fallen. So the humans choose to have Demihumans be all that lives here."

The horned man huffed in derision. "Foolish and racist." '_I guess the racial divide is even greater than it was in the game. Better help fix that._'

Stopping, Rem pointed ahead. "There's a branch of the Adventurer's Guild here in the city we can register with. It's the only way to take on Quests."

"Right then," he remarked before changing the subject, "There didn't appear to be monsters on the way here."

"Most were taken out by Adventurers, and the ones remaining are frightened away by the presence of the Fallen. So the roads are surprisingly safe most of the time."

"Good to know," Diablo noted as he looked around the area.

"We're here," Rem interjected as they approached a small building located near the center of the city, teeming with people going in and out at a steady pace.

As they walked in, the trio's presence was swiftly noticed the dozens of people inside.

Diablo stiffened instantly as he scanned the room. A Pantherian with hefty equipment, an armored person whose entire body was obscured, two burly Dwarves who could stare a hole in steel, not only were many of them staring keenly at him and his two companions, many others were in the midst of painting the place with someone else's face. He felt the strong impulse to shiver. '_Stay calm, stay calm… You're Diablo remember, and far more powerful than them. You've defeated and subjugated numerous Demon Lords and the Fallen Angel Belial after all! So why am I scared by these guys!?_'

Rem, seemingly just annoyed, turned to Diablo and explained, "I know they're obnoxious, but it's always like this. Let's go upstairs to register."

"Right," he answered bluntly, attempting to hide the fact he was just about to ruin his trousers.

However, as the trio made their way to the stairs, a voice suddenly called out, "Hold it right there!"

Diablo stopped in mild annoyance and turned to see a person in full armor, dark greys mixed with deep reds, two large curled horns atop their armored head. "And just who the hell are you?" '_And why are you so scary!?_'

"Eh?" the armored figure asked in an annoyed tone. "I am a knight who defends all in need! Including those young maidens you enslaved!"

Diablo just stared at the knight for a moment. "… Hah? What are you blathering about, Red?"

The knight immediately pointed to Rem, more specifically, her neck. "Those slave collars you have wrapped around those maidens, you vagrant!"

Diablo raised an eyebrow curiously before understanding what the knight was talking about. "Oh. You mean their screw up."

"Why you…!" the knight hissed, drawing their blade.

Diablo looked over the warrior's sword in thought. '_He doesn't seem all that strong, compared to me at least, but there is a _lot_ of power coming off his sword._' With a small grin, he reached into his cloak and pulled out his ruby-tipped staff. '_I might actually have some fun with this one._' "Seriously? You're going to draw your sword here, 'knight'?" he taunted, deciding to test the knight's resolve to fight.

"If it's to defend innocent women from a fiend, so be it!" the knight hollered as the sword began to emit a faint red light.

'_Hm… from the sensation I'm getting, he's probably around Level Fifty._'

"I certainly hope you don't think I'd just stand around and let you carry Miss Rem around as a slave!"

That got the silver-haired man's attention. "_Miss_ Rem? You know this kitty cat?"

With a snarl, the knight lowered their sword to attack. "You're beginning to annoy me, Demon!"

"Then come at me, knight, and let's see what you've got!"

On cue, a bright yellow light enveloped the blade.

Diablo observed carefully. '_Sword Rain? That's a most basic skill for a seemingly powerful knight. I suppose he plans to faint it out with a different tactic._' He tensed his fingers as he went through some of his offensive spells in his mind. '_Best get ready for what he's planning._'

The knight immediately charged in a blur of light.

'_He's seriously just going in with Sword Rain alone!?_' Realizing the state of his combatant, Diablo just sighed and lowered his guard before lazily raising a hand and slamming it into the knight's face, sending the armored opponent flying against a wall, their helmet landing nearby on the floor. Diablo's jaw nearly hit the floor when he looked upon the knight's face.

To Diablo's surprise, rather than a gruff, grizzled old man underneath the helmet, he saw a beautiful young woman with bright, emerald green eyes and long, wild blonde hair that, even tied into a braided ponytail, reached to her waist. The woman shot him a cold glare as a small streak of blood trickled from her surprisingly delicate lips.

'_The idiot is a cute girl!? Wait, oh shit, I just decked her too!_'

Before the woman could pursue the conflict any further, Rem stepped between her and Diablo. "Mordred, stop! He's telling the truth!"

Mordred looked at the petite girl in bewilderment. "What?" she asked, seemingly having dropped the forced baritone in her voice.

Rem, with embarrassment flashing across her cheeks, explained quietly, "We… Shera and I… we attempted to Summon him as a Familiar, but the spell backfired and put the Collars on us instead…"

Mordred narrowed her eyes and glanced up at Diablo and Shera, the two both nodding. The blond sighed as she stowed her blade and put her helmet back on, tucking her wild hair up into it. "So then… you weren't forcibly enslaved?"

"No," Rem answered firmly.

Mordred sighed and then let out a good-natured laugh, seeming to have forgotten, or ignored, everything that had just happened. "Well that's good, then! All's well that ends well, they say."

Diablo felt a vein trying to pop out of his forehead. '_Not even an apology!?_' "Well you're certainly not much of what I would call a knight."

Mordred looked at Diablo, her face obscured, but he could feel the cold glare underneath. "Oy, clam it, Demon. I've already forgiven you, don't push it."

The popping vein was joined by a twitching eyebrow. '_Forgiven _me_?! You're the one who attacked me without knowing the full details!_' With a sigh, he told himself that further pursuance of the argument was not worth the trouble. "I meant your insult when you called me a slaver, earlier."

Mordred flinched momentarily, seeming to recognize her mistake. She quickly coughed and redirected matters, however. "A – Ah. Well seeing a Demon walking around with a slave collar around someone as important as Miss Rem, what was I supposed to think?"

"Ask what's going on first instead of letting petty racial fears drive you to act. The greatest of knights are above such petty thinking."

Mordred stood motionless as he spoke.

"You have potential to be powerful, human. Do not disappoint me by misusing it," he commanded before turning on his heels and flaring his cape, proceeding up the stairs with Rem and Shera shortly behind him.

Mordred watched him leave with only one thought in her head. '_… So cool…_'

* * *

Upstairs, Diablo looked ahead as he saw three nearly identical girls at a series of desks. Each with short, somewhat messy brown hair tied with a ribbon, pale amber eyes, along with drooping canine ears atop their head and a matching bushy tail, each girl wearing a skimpy crop top with a baggy trousers, one wore blue, the other yellow, and the third red. What they also all had in common were immense orbs hanging from their chests, rivaling Shera's in size.

Diablo stared at the trio, gulping slightly. "Sexdorable…" he commented quietly.

Shera wondered what he said, as she had not heard him properly, though he responded flippantly.

'_Seeing them so much in the game is so different from seeing them in real life…_' "So… Who do we speak to?" '_They look just like the quest-givers from the game. If I remember right, yellow, Jaune, is advanced quests, red, Rouge, is story quests, and blue, Bleu, is beginner quests._'

"The one in blue," Rem explained, pointing to Bleu.

'_I'm so used to Advanced Quests I almost instinctively went to Jaune…_'

"H – Hello…" Bleu greeted with a shaky voice as Diablo approached her desk.

Diablo did his best to put on a pleasant smile. "Hello. We would like to register."

"R – Right," she replied as she pulled a stack of several documents from under the desk.

Diablo twitched an eyebrow as he looked at them. '_Oh great… Paperwork…_' As he scanned the papers, a sudden realization hit him. '_I can't read a word of it! Why?!_' Trying to play it off as flippancy, he handed his pages to Shera. "Tch, I don't have time for such menial tasks. Shera, fill it out for me."

"O – Okay," she stammered with surprised excitement as she pored over the documents. "It's like I'm really the Master…!"

"What was that?" he asked, sounding intimidating but honestly having not heard her.

"N – Nothing!" she stuttered as she began filling in the blank spaces on the page.

Diablo just shrugged before folding his arms in thought. '_Hmm… I wonder if there is a translation spell… Okay… think of your spells… Two hundred and seventy-six is a lot to think through…_' He quietly hummed in consideration. '_Memory Absorption maybe? In-game it let me see a list of the enemy's exact actions in battle, but I can't predict what it'll do at this point. It could let me obtain information they possess, or it might do something I can't even conceive of. Right, only one way to find out. Okay, if I remember right, the spell requires direct physical contact. … Who to grab… Either one could cause problems… Shera looks like she'd be the least troubling._' He went to tap Shera on the shoulder, only for her to instantly spring up, startling him.

"All done!" Shera cheered as she stood up straight, handing both her own papers and Diablo's to Bleu. Turning to her Pantherian companion, she urged, "You're next, Rem."

Rem merely approached the counter without saying a word and began writing.

Diablo gave a smile as he patted Shera's head gently. "Good girl."

Shera looked up at him with astonishment before swooning as her ears wiggled.

Diablo just maintained a curt smile before his eyes shot wide as faint images and sounds flooded into his mind. '_Th – This…_' He saw immense trees with bridges connecting them, hundreds of elves, male, female, young, old, wandering their areas. '_This is… really her memories…_' He felt something begin to boil in his chest as a series of images shown, a male elf standing over Shera with a twisted grin. With only a single phrase coming through the faint haze. 'Have my children.' Diablo narrowed his eyes with disgust. '_I am going to butcher that Elf Prince…_'

Shera noticed Diablo's expression of disgust and tilted her head in curiosity. "Diablo?"

He stuttered slightly as he removed his hand from her, his focus shifting from the images in his mind. "Y – Yes?" he responded weakly, trying to maintain his usual façade.

Shera's ears drooped slightly in concern. "You okay?"

Diablo merely huffed off her concern. "I am simply nauseous at the stench in this city."

"O – Oh…" she responded, seeming disappointed in his answer.

Diablo glanced past Shera to Rem, particularly at the paper she was writing on. He was able to recognize the words printed on it, such as "land of origin", or "name". He then looked around the room at the signage in the area.

"Office".

"Lounge".

"Toilet".

'_Well, at the very least I can read now. That's good to know._'

He was pulled from his thoughts by a light clunk as Bleu placed a large dagger on the counter. "Now, I need your blood seal," she explained, trying to hide her apprehension at the naturally imposing man before her.

"… Blood seal?" The same imposing man who suddenly felt like he was going to lose his lunch.

"It's necessary…" Bleu pleaded as Rem pricked the end of her finger and left a small, bloody thumbprint on her papers.

Shera quivered fearfully. "I don't wanna…"

"You have to," Rem urged.

Diablo, too fraught in his own fear to reassure Shera, gulped and tried to show as much false confidence as he could muster. "You'll never be an Adventurer if you balk at something as trivial as this. Besides, a syringe poke is hardly terrifying."

Rem blinked once or twice in thought before lowering one ear in confusion. "Syringe?"

"A needle used to draw blood."

She mouthed the word "oh" in recognition.

Diablo gulped down his nerves as he grabbed the dagger, trying to hide his trembling hand. '_It's just a little prick… like getting a shot…_' With a single deft movement, he slashed the tip of his thumb.

All the girls around him shrieked in horror as blood shot from the cut like a hose.

Wanting to stem the tied swiftly, he slammed his finger down on the paper, unwittingly splashing it in blood, along with the terrified dog-eared girl behind the counter, who merely whimpered in fear.

Diablo twitched an eyebrow at his own mistake and weakly reach over and patted the girl on the head softly. "… Sorry…"

Bleu merely stood motionless, trembling.

* * *

After sorting out the documents, or what could be salvaged from them, sorting out the particulars, and cleaning up the mess, Bleu led the trio to a large mirror, the surface of which was black as night.

Shera looked at the object in thought, curious about its lack of reflection. "What's this?"

Rem answered plainly, "A mirror that gauges your power."

Diablo felt some sweat fall down his cheek. '_Oh this can't end well…_'

Motioning to the mirror, Bleu explained, "Just put your hand on it and pump some mana into it."

Rem acted first as she put her hand on it. Almost immediately a partial reflection appeared in the mirror, though only of her, not of the surrounding area.

Bleu looked it over curiously, scanning over some papers she held at the same time. "Wow. It's so clear, and crisp. Looks like… Level Forty."

Diablo attempted to contain a small snicker, which earned him an annoyed ear twitch from Rem.

"Me next!" Shera cheered as she ran up to the mirror and placed her hand on it, watching her reflection form.

Bleu looked it over in thought. "Ooh, it's so clear. And goes all the way down to your chest. Let's see… if I can count the number of eyelashes and it extends down to your chest, that means… Level Thirty."

Shera backed away from the mirror in rejection. "… E – Eh…? No way…! I lost to Rem!?"

Diablo furrowed his brow in thought as well. "I think that mirror might be broken. She does have far more mana than her."

Bleu, wincing away from Diablo, argued weakly, "It measures a combination of mana, intelligence, skill, and strength."

"Oh. That is low intelligence, then."

Shera puffed her cheeks angrily.

Diablo merely stared at her adorable display before patting her head gently. "There, there. You have other things she doesn't."

That got Rem's tail twitching violently, though her face remained unchanging.

"What?"

Looking up from her papers, Bleu timidly urged, "N – Next…"

Diablo frowned as he walked toward the mirror incredulously, before looking at Bleu. "… I recommend you and your sisters close your eyes and mute your ears. Something tells me I might break this."

Taking his advice, Bleu backed away even further before Diablo put his hand on the mirror.

He watched curiously as he felt some of his strength leave him and saw the mirror change. Rather than show his reflection, however, it darkened even further, to a color of black that seemed impossible before it started sparking and sending energy bursting out in all directions, shaking the building violently. '_Ah fuck._'

Rouge and Jaune held each other as they shrieked in terror before Diablo finally removed his hand from the object, the energy receding completely.

The door on the side of the room suddenly burst open as a figure ran out in a panic. "What was that?!"

Diablo, still somewhat surprised by the development, turned to the source of the voice, a petite girl with short pink hair, teal eyes, an overly skimpy white outfit that hid very little of her delicate form, and two long, tall, black rabbit ears atop her head. Looking at her for a moment, he then pointed to the mirror. "It couldn't handle me touching it."

The girl just stared with befuddlement.

* * *

Eventually she took the trio into the room, her office, introducing herself as Sylvie, the Guild's head.

After looking over the document with Diablo's information, having to peer through the dried blood splashed on it, she set it on the desk in front of her. "I don't think there's anything we can do for you here."

Diablo raised an eyebrow at the comment.

"There's no doubt you're a high level. So high in fact that none of the quests we receive will be of any challenge."

"And…?" he returned.

She merely shrugged before adding, "Think about it, you're probably a higher Level than me. You really okay with me ordering you around?"

Diablo folded his arms in thought before answering. "As long as you give me the money at the end of the job, that doesn't matter. After all, what's the use of such power if you can't use it yourself?"

Sylvie blinked in thought a few times before laughing in amusement. "Well you're certainly an interesting one."

'_It feels like she's making fun of me…_'

"I'd suggest you stop by the central Guild HQ in Orario some time, but I'd be thrilled to have you here."

"I think it would be best for us to stay here a while."

"Fine by me," the Grasswalker remarked with acceptance. "I'll let you know if anything fitting your skills comes up."

Diablo nodded before he and the girls left the Guild building entirely.

* * *

"Now we should find an inn," Diablo noted as he looked to the two girls behind him. "Know of any good ones?"

Shera was the first to respond. "There's a cheap one Rem and I have been staying at."

Diablo frowned slightly incredulous at the answer. "… I see." '_Is cheap necessarily a good thing…? I guess it'll have to do until I can find Nazarick._'

* * *

Shortly, Rem and Shera led him to the inn they had been staying at before heading to the Starfall Tower, Inn Relief.

Inside, at the front desk was another Pantherian, a girl with short brown hair tied in pigtails with amber eyes, a pair of cat ears and a feline tail poking out under her maid-like uniform, though unlike Rem's, they were a spotted, leopard-like pattern rather than matching her hair. With a cutesy pose of her hands, the girl greeted, "Welcome to the inn Relief! I'm its idol Mei-Nya!"

"I see," Diablo answered with a fully placid expression. Inside, however, '_Cute! I just wanna pet her!_'

Shera, fidgeting somewhat nervously, explained, "… Um, I want to have the same room as him."

Mei smirked with intrigue. "Nya? A lover?"

Shera's face turned red as her ears drooped somewhat nervously. "I – It's just, I can't afford two rooms…"

Rem coldly interjected, "Don't be concerned with it. Diablo will be staying in my room."

Shera turned to her cat-eared companion, irritated. "What. No, he's staying in mine!"

Mei, keeping her pleasant smile, attempted to head off their argument. "Please, don't fight in the lobby, nya."

"I don't need him staying in a room with some fat elf like you!" Rem shot back.

"And _I_ don't want you to run off with him while I'm asleep!" Shera retorted.

Diablo merely sighed as their argument continued.

Mei's smile started to wane with a twitch. "Um, mew are bothering the other customers…"

"And why would it be a problem if I did!? It's not like you're smart enough to do anything!"

"I may not be that smart, but at least I'm not as mean as you!"

Mei, with a smile that bordered on malicious, threatened, "If you don't stop, I'll throw you out, nya."

The two stopped fighting, though kept glaring at each other.

* * *

After the end of their argument, they made their way upstairs to where the patron rooms were.

"Now let's get set up in the rooms," Diablo urged as he rolled his shoulder.

Shera, disappointed, remarked, "But we could only afford this one."

Diablo froze where he stood. "… R – Right. Will that be a problem?"

"N – No," Shera answered, though somewhat uncomfortably as she threw glances at Rem.

"Then let's get some rest." Opening the door to the room, Diablo's trepidation skyrocketed.

The room itself was the definition of barebones. A window on the far side from the door with no curtains, a pitiable wardrobe on the left wall that was barely big enough to fit a person in, let alone a selection of clothing, a nightstand on the right wall that was little more than a table with a candle on it, and right next to it a bed that, to his best guess, was the equivalent to a queen-sized bed.

He could feel the sweat starting to pour down his back. '_Two girls in a bed this small… Okay, you can handle this, it wouldn't be the first time… But Cassandra and Akashi didn't look like… this… But as a demon lord… it should be fine…_' Almost on reflex he looked towards Shera, who merely gave him an unassuming smile, causing him to shake his head violently. '_No, no! She's already been taken advantage of, I can't! Only villains do that!_'

Rem huffed in displeasure. "I have to share a room with that idiot."

"Stop with the insults," Diablo rebuffed firmly.

Rem frowned slightly. "Huh? You have to be able to see how –"

"Quiet," he growled, causing Rem to lurch back in trepidation. "Good."

The three then began sorting out their things in the room when a knock at the door got everyone's attention.

Raising an eyebrow, he beckoned in the visitor, which turned out to actually be three people.

Two of them were men in black robes holding long wooden staffs, their faces hidden.

At the front of the trio, and the apparent leader, was a woman with long, wavy lavender hair and chestnut brown eyes wearing a form-fitting, elaborate, bright blue gown with a dark violet cloak over her shoulders, who also held a staff in her grip.

Shera looked up from what she was doing on the side of the bed, Rem looking to the woman with surprise. "Celestine?"

Diablo furrowed his brow curiously. '_Celestine? That name sounds familiar… Wait… Celestine Baudelaire. The leader of the Mage's Association and one of the most powerful wizards. What's someone like that doing here?_'

Celestine bowed gracefully with a smile as she scanned around the room. "I'm glad to see you're back in one piece, Rem. Shera. And who is this?"

He answered her bluntly. "Diablo, Ms. Celestine Baudelaire."

"Diablo?" Celestine reiterated with curiosity.

Shera excitedly added, "He's a Demon King from another world I summoned!"

"We, stupid elf," Rem corrected firmly.

Sighing, Diablo interjected before another argument could start. "They're my idiot servants now because their own stupid actions."

"Oh?" Celestine returned, intrigued.

* * *

The group sat in the dining hall of the inn, the large room empty of any patrons besides the six, as the girls and Diablo explained the situation up to that point.

Celestine put a finger on her chin as she thought over the story. "My, my. That is a unique predicament."

"Ya think?" Rem retorted with annoyance.

With a sigh, Celestine continued, "Unfortunately, I don't know enough about Slave Collars to fix it."

That was not the answer Rem wanted to hear as her ears sloped back in disappointment.

"Your best bet will be to meet with someone from Shiga."

"Oh?" Diablo replied with a raised eyebrow.

"They're a nation that specializes in slavery. Most wars they conduct are for the express purpose of enslaving the defeated."

Diablo narrowed his eyes with suspicion as she spoke.

"At any rate, I apologize for not being of any help." Turning her attention to Rem directly, she questioned, "And you're okay with this, Rem?"

Rem could do little more than shrug. "I don't particularly have a choice."

"I see." After a pause, Celestine turned her attention back to Diablo. "My business today is with Rem, but I'd very much like to hear your story, Diablo."

He raised an eyebrow and decided to see how she reacted. "Oh? As they say, I am a Demon Lord from another world, summoned here by these two in the hopes of making me their slave. Naturally their magic backfired. I mean, you'd think they'd know trying to enslave such a being would end with them being enslaved instead."

Nodding, Celestine replied, "It actually isn't impossible for low level summoners to enslave high-level beings. I imagine it's something unique to you."

"Perhaps," he answered simply before seeing the ring on his finger and remembering. "Ah, yes. It was so trivial I'd forgotten. But I possess the ability to reflect all magic below a certain threshold. And such a spell is below that threshold. I imagine most spells used by you mortals would be."

One of the hooded men suddenly spoke up, agitated. "You watch your tongue, Demon!"

Diablo just glanced at him ambivalently.

"You're just a Demihuman! Show some respect to the head of the Mage's Association!"

Diablo continued staring at him calmly, though he was somewhat uncomfortable. '_This guy's definitely got an intense air about him, but he's nothing compared to Cassandra while she was carrying Kazuko._' "I show respect to only a few, and none are here right now."

"Why you –!" the man began to snarl before Celestine raised her staff, stopping him from speaking.

"Galluk!" she called out, irritated.

"H – Huh?" he stuttered, not expecting Celestine's reaction.

"You're being noisy. Either be quiet or get out. Understood?"

Galluk held his tongue but looked at the quietly sitting Diablo and snarled.

"Leave. Now," Celestine ordered bluntly.

Growling again, the man stormed out.

Celestine sighed as he left before turning back to Diablo with her same pleasant smile. "Sorry about that. There are still some humans who harbor resentment to the Demihumans."

That caught him off guard. Raising an eyebrow, Diablo decided to press the issue. "What for?"

"Until a few years ago it was believed Demihumans were all a type of Fallen. It's been proven decidedly untrue, but many people, especially noble families, still hold those beliefs."

Diablo folded his arms with a huff. "Then they are fools. If the Fallen where any form of crafty, they would use this to gain very willing soldiers in the form of the Demi-Humans and Non-Human races." He furrowed his brow slightly in consideration. '_Fallen… if I remember right, that was the name of Yggdrasil's generic sub-bosses that could be encountered in non-event Dungeons, with weaker variants roaming the overworld, the Demon Lords ruled over them. And I have five of them under Nazarick's command._'

Celestine could only shrug. "Then we should thank the gods that most Fallen are very stupid."

"Celestine…" Rem spoke up softly.

Smiling, the woman corrected, "Please, just Celes is fine."

"R – Right…"

With another reassuring smile, Celes stood up before bowing. "Well, I suppose I have nothing else to say, so until we talk again."

"So be it. Good day," he replied firmly.

Turning to the petite Pantherian again, Celes added, "Remember Rem, keep yourself safe. You're very important to our world," before walking out with her remaining escort.

After she left, the three sat quietly eating. Well, except for Shera, who very noisily proclaimed her excitement at having food.

A few more moments passed before Diablo turned to Rem. "Well?"

"Well what?" she returned plainly, pushing around the food on her plate, though not actually eating it.

"That woman is quite an important person. And for her to be visiting you, there must be quite a good reason."

"Nothing, I assure you."

Diablo felt a switch go off in his mind. '_Lies. My gamer instincts are running wild. I get the feeling her story is extremely important to the events of this world. Meaning if I'm going to figure out what's going on in this world and solve whatever crazy story some stupid god has in mind for me, I'm going to need to get that info out of her. And if she's not talking willingly…_' Standing up suddenly, he turned to the bewildered Rem and grabbed her by the midsection and hoisted her over his shoulder.

"H – Hey!" Rem protested as she started smacking on his back with her balled up fists.

"Humph, you're extremely light." Turning his attention to Shera, who was visibly perplexed and surprised, he noted, "Shera. I'll be busy."

"Wh – Where are you going?!" Shera asked, caught off guard by what was happening.

"This one isn't talking, so I need to torture her."

"Hah!?" Rem exclaimed, trying again to break free of his grip to no avail.

Shera sat silently for a moment before returning to her meal. "… Okay, I'll be here eating my steak."

"What?! Help me, you stupid elf!" Rem repeatedly called out to the elf as she was carried away by Diablo.

* * *

Making his way back to the room, he shut and locked the door behind him before tossing Rem onto the bed, the girl releasing a small cough as he did. "Now then. Tell me why Celes was meeting with you."

"N – No, I can't…" she protested, glaring up at the horned man.

His annoyed glower turned into a cruel grin as he leaned overtop of her. "Fine, then I'll force it out of you."

Rem's face went blue as he loomed over her. "A – Are you planning to disgrace me?!"

Diablo froze in place as his mind finally caught up to his body. '_Craaap! I got so into character I didn't really think about it! Okay, think, think… Hmm… Maybe…_' Taking a gamble, he reached up with his right hand and grabbed one of her feline ears, gently squeezing it between his fingers.

* * *

**And done! Thus ends the story's first chapter! Hope you all enjoyed it, be sure to leave a review letting me know if you did. If you were confused, uncertain, or just have questions on anything, let me know and I will do what I can to address your queries in the first reviewer response... whenever that happens to be. I cannot promise when I will update again nor if this story will be what gets it, all I can say is I will try and write what time, and my level of activity, permits. Until next time, bye-bye!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter II**

**Greetings and salutations everyone! I have returned with another chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed the previous chapter; the reception seems pretty positive overall, which is nice. Be sure to let me know if you enjoy this one as well. That said, let us get on to the reviewer responses, there are certainly a few to go through.**

**Messiah of authors: I can see why some people wouldn't. Personally, I really do like him. He obviously doesn't fit as the main character to every story, but I like him as a protagonist, though he does have his annoying moments.**

**flo463: Since I've got two jobs to deal with and a life outside of that, I'm pretty just writing whenever I get the scant chance to, as a result I'm writing whatever I have the inspiration for at the time. I'm sure I'll get around to those stories at some point. I'm just more interested in these two at the moment.**

**Skull Flame: No. He looks just like he did in How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord.**

**Well hopefully it keeps your interest.**

**Kind of, but you're also not completely wrong. You'll just have to wait and see.**

**Fortitude501: Yeah, pretty much.**

**LOL, yeah, it's right there with him.**

**Guest: Dude. Most certainly dude.**

**superpierce: Okay, that's my mistake. I honestly thought it was World Class.**

**No, in the novel, the ring does in fact have a limit to how much magic it can reflect. I don't remember off the top of my head but I think it's something like the most powerful spells will still hit him or something. Regardless, the anime edited many things from the novel, and one of them was the power of Diablo's ring.**

**The Lazy Dragon: It's certainly a possibility, yes.**

**Okay, that was a pretty good amount. Well, on with the main event!**

* * *

Making his way back to the room, he shut and locked the door behind him before tossing Rem onto the bed, the girl releasing a small cough as he did. "Now then. Tell me why Celes was meeting with you."

"N – No, I can't…" she protested, glaring up at the horned man.

His annoyed glower turned into a cruel grin as he leaned overtop of her. "Fine, then I'll force it out of you."

Rem's face went blue as he loomed over her. "A – Are you planning to disgrace me?!"

Diablo froze in place as his mind finally caught up to his body. '_Craaap! I got so into character I didn't really think about it! Okay, think, think… Hmm… Maybe…_' Taking a gamble, he reached up with his right hand and grabbed one of her feline ears, gently squeezing it between his fingers.

Rem's back suddenly arched as she held back a powerful moan.

Diablo released a tight sigh of relief. '_Okay, this should work. Touching her anywhere else would make me feel like an actual villain… not just roleplay…_' "Well?"

"I – I can't…" she weakly managed to spit out.

He firmly pinched the edge of her ear between his fingers. "The more you resist the worse it'll get."

Rem trembled and squirmed more below him, attempting to wriggle away from him, a small moan escaping that hitched in her throat. "You'll… just leave like everyone else…"

Diablo kept his fingers teasing the fur on her ear as he thought. '_Huh? How to respond…_' After another moment, he came up with what he considered a suitable retort. "You're my slave, Rem. You belong to me. There's nothing anyone but I can do to change that." '_Man that felt dirty…_'

Rem's body suddenly stiffened as her eyes shot wide, looking up at him.

Diablo winced at the expression on her face. '_D – Did I go too far…?_'

Rem's eyes slowly returned to normal as she attempted to force the words out. "Do you… do you mean that?"

Momentarily raising an eyebrow in thought, his expression returned to neutral as he nodded. "Yes. I do not say anything I don't mean."

Rem's tiny body began shivering as tears started forming at the edges of her eyes. "You won't… abandon me…?"

Diablo stood over her silently as he considered what to say. '_Dammit… Gah! Why did I have to make my character a demon king?! Okay, I need to think of something that sounds sorta evil but lets her know I won't go away…_' However, his thoughts came to a halt as he looked at Rem, staring up at him desperately. "I… you belong to me, Rem Galleu. There is nothing in this world or any other that can change that."

She stared at the horned man in silent awe. "… You promise?"

He nodded firmly. "I swear on my power as the True Demon Lord Diablo."

She continued gazing at him before nodding slowly. "… Okay… I'll tell you."

Diablo got off from her and sat next to her, helping her sit up.

Her gaze turned from Diablo to the floor as her expression soured. "If I die, the world will likely end."

He just raised an eyebrow, surprised.

Rem placed a hand over her abdomen as she explained, "The soul of the Demon Lord Krebskulm is sealed inside my body. If I die, her soul will be released, and she'll be reborn into the world."

Diablo remained silent for a moment. "… Is that it?"

Rem turned to him suddenly with surprise. "H – Huh? What do… you mean?"

'_Krebskulm… that was the strongest Boss in Yggdrasil. Even I never fought her, but her sisters I did, and beat. So this little girl has that thing inside of her? I can't imagine what it's like._' With a pompous huff, he retorted proudly, "You really thought I'd leave you over something as trivial as that? How foolish! I am the Great Demon Lord Diablo! I will subjugate her and free you from this burden to live your own life. Just as I have done with five other Demon Lords."

Rem's eyes widened as she listened to his words.

With a smirk, he added, "After all, you belong to me, not some third-rate Demon Lord."

Rem began trembling where she sat before tears started falling uncontrollably.

'_Oh shit, did I go too far!?_' His brain went completely flatline as Rem lurched over from where she sat and wrapped her slender arms around him. '_… E – Eh…?_'

"Thank you…"

"Y – You're welcome…?" he responded, his façade faltering slightly in pure perplexed shock.

"That… that's the first time anyone… ever said they wouldn't leave me…"

Diablo just sat silently next to her as she sobbed before gently patting her head.

* * *

Soon after, the atmosphere in the room calmed down, Shera joined the two, and they prepared to head for bed.

Diablo gulped somewhat nervously as Shera and Rem slept beside him. '_Odd… in a way… this brings me back._' Sighing, he stared up at the ceiling. '_So… I'm really in the world of Yggdrasil? It's… somewhat absurd to think about. But the setting, the races, the locations, even some of the things they talk about. It all matches up to information I know from Yggdrasil. Unfortunately I mostly memorized the technical aspects of things. Hopefully that'll be enough to keep them thinking I am what I say I am until I'm able to sort things out a little more._'

Pushing the thoughts from his mind with a sigh, he let the embrace of sleep take him.

* * *

Diablo slowly stirred awake as light shone in from the window and the sounds of the world outside reached him. Opening his eyes, he saw the wood-paneled ceiling of the inn. He almost reflexively let out a sigh. '_So… it really wasn't a dream… Damn…_' He slowly pushed himself to sitting position, before noticing a surprising, but entirely unfamiliar, sensation of softness in his left hand. Slowly, jerkily turning his head to the side, he confirmed his suspicions. His left hand was firmly grasped onto Shera's bulging tits. '_Oh crap… Okay, it's a simple thing… just let go… … My hand isn't listening to me!_' His fingers wiggled and twitched as they seemingly fought against his attempts to wrest them from her orb, inciting a soft moan from the sleeping elf. _It's so soft… and springy… and my fingers sink into it…!_'

Feeling a firm softness on his right hand, he feared the worst and turned to the other side to see that, yes, his right hand was draped over Rem's petite breast as well. '_They're still budding… but they're soft… and nice in their own way… NO! Stop this! Hands!_'

Shera rolled as she slept, her moans growing louder before she began to slowly wake up. As her eyes opened, she saw Diablo's hand sunk firmly into her chest. She blinked once. Then twice. Then she made the connection. "Kyaaa!" she shrieked as she sat up and moved to the edge of the bed, away from him, curling up slightly. "N – No! It's not good t – to do this! Not until you choose me as your Master!"

Diablo's jaw nearly hit the floor. '_Wait, so it's okay if I do!? The fuck?!_'

Rem sat up sleepily as well with a groan. "Why are mew so loud, nya…?"

"N – No reason… you can go back to sleep…" Diablo urged weakly.

Rem blinked curiously before looking down to see his hand on her budding chest, causing her face to turn a brilliant shade of red.

'_Crap… think Demon Lord, think Demon Lord… what do I say!?_' "D – Don't feel defeated, Rem. Hold your chest out with pride."

Rem stared silently at him in disbelief before twitching. "NYAAA!"

* * *

"Geez…" Diablo groaned as he walked behind Rem and Shera, some claw-like scratch marks going down one side of his face. He saw Rem walking in front of him with a deep, shadowed look on her face. "You still mad, Rem?"

"I'm not mad," she replied coldly. "Let's just go grab a job."

Diablo just sighed as the scratches on his face began to fade away. '_Yep, she's still mad…_'

Shera hid behind Diablo's cape, warily staring at Rem. "Scary…"

As the group rounded a corner, Diablo felt someone run into him, though he himself was barely budged. Looking down, he saw a young woman with long, bright blue hair, a large curl atop her head, her bangs framing around her dark blue eyes, wearing a sleeveless blue blouse, that hugged tight enough to show her moderate figure, with a pleated, layered, blue and yellow skirt, long white arm-warmers, and thigh-high, blue, high-heeled boots. '_Wow… she's pretty cute…_'

"Ow…" the girl groaned as she slumped on the ground before pointing at Diablo angrily. "Hey! Watch it, jerk!"

'_Aaand she ruined it._' "… You're the one that ran into me girl."

The girl stood up, dusted herself off, and pointed at him defiantly. "I'm not just _a_ girl! I'm the goddess of water, Aqua!"

Another person came running from around the same corner, irritated. "Hey! Didn't I tell you? Don't just go running around –" the new person, a girl with long, dark lavender hair tied back with a large, light blue bow, bright azure eyes, and fair skin, wearing a simple white dress with a large blue orb that hung on a necklace in front of her ample bosom, though not quite as sizable as Shera's. When she set eyes on Diablo, her expression stiffened in total shock.

"This delusional blue girl with you?" Diablo questioned as Aqua kept shouting at him.

The girl shook her head to break out of her stupor and nodded. "Y – Yes, she is. She's the reason I'm here, actually."

Diablo merely nodded. '_I don't know why, but there's something familiar about her…_'

Bowing, the girl introduced herself. "Nanana Ryugajou."

Diablo raised an eyebrow in thought. '_That's a very Japanese name…_' "I see. My name is Diablo."

Shera waved with a bright smile. "I'm Shera L Greenwood."

"Rem Galleu," the Pantherian introduced, still glowering from the morning's events.

Nanana backed away slightly from the cat-eared girl's anger before she noticed something about the girls that caught her interest and looked at Diablo. "What's with those big collars?"

"We're Diablo's slaves," Rem answered rather bluntly.

Nanana's jaw nearly fell off. "Eehh!?"

'_Dammit, Rem, you can't just be that nonchalant about it!_' Diablo shouted in his head before deciding to try and correct the situation before it got too troublesome. "These two tried using enslavement magic on me. It bounced back."

"O – Oh…" the purple-haired girl muttered as she calmed down before mumbling quietly, "I thought you'd gone bad, Momo…"

Diablo felt his ears twitch at her words. "… What did you say…?"

Nanana just waved her arms frantically as she tried to brush it off. "N – Nothing. Diablo, you say? So, are you Adventurers?"

Diablo narrowed his eyes suspiciously. '_There's only one person who calls me that… I guess I'll just leave it for now._' "Yes, we are. Rem is Level Forty, Shera is Level Thirty, and my Level is apparently beyond measure."

"Riiiiight…" Aqua hummed sarcastically, earning her a smack from Nanana.

She then added, "We were actually looking for the Guild to get our Levels measured."

Diablo nodded in understanding before continuing to walk, the girls following him. "Ah. We were headed there for a mission. You're welcome to accompany us."

"Yay!" Nanana cheered as she skipped up to him, Aqua following with a groan.

* * *

As the group continued towards the Guild, Shera occasionally looked at Nanana, who walked the closest to Diablo, smiling and humming as they made their way through the crowded streets. After several minutes of this, Shera pouted in confusion. "Hey, Rem, is it just me, or is that girl acting really familiar with Diablo?"

Rem stopped in her tracks and looked at Shera in surprise, the others noticing the two's pause and stopping as well.

The elf noticed the cat-eared girl's shock and tilted her head, perplexed. "H – Huh? What'd I say?"

"Something smart," Rem noted bluntly, prompting Shera to puff her cheeks in offense.

Diablo put a hand up to stop the two. "Come on you two, cut it out. It won't reflect on me well if my slaves are constantly bickering."

"Yes, Master," Rem retorted coldly as she continued walking, causing Diablo to wince in response.

Nanana snickered in amusement. "You walked into that one, Momo." Shaking her head, she corrected, "D – Diablo, I mean."

Diablo narrowed his eyes before turning to Rem as he put a hand on Nanana's shoulder. "Rem, can you take these two to the Guild? I need to speak with our friend here."

Rem raised an eyebrow but nodded and continued walking, Shera and Aqua following behind her.

Diablo quickly pulled Nanana with him to an alleyway off the side of the street. "How'd you get here Tabula?"

Nanana chuckled before looking up at the man. "That easy, huh?"

He responded gruffly, "You're the only one in the Guild who called me Momo. So, out with it."

The girl waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, come on, enough with the act, I already know what you're really like."

"So? I need to keep up the appearances to the others."

"Huh? Why? Wait, you're not actually nervous are you?"

Diablo winced slightly before looking off to the side. "That's not… entirely wrong…"

"Wow…"

Diablo twitched an eyebrow and looked down at the girl. "… Shut up…"

Nanana smirked wryly and leaned forward slightly, giving Diablo a view to almost perfectly see her melons in her shirt. "Is this what's bothering you?" she teased.

Diablo gulped as he tried to look away. "Not… exactly…"

"Wow… even though you got busy with Sinoula, this much bothers you?"

"… Well, my wives tend to be the ones in charge…"

Nanana smirked with further amusement. "Hoh? Wait, wiveS?"

"Yes… they are very hard to say no to…"

Nanana's smirk widened. "You're getting even more interesting, Momo."

The man groaned and corrected, "Stop calling me Momo, the others know me as Diablo."

Nanana huffed flippantly. "Oh come on, stop it with the big bad Demon Lord act. It's not who you are, plus, you were making your friends uncomfortable."

He rebutted, "I can't. People in this world respect power. If I am to protect these two, I need to act the part."

The girl sighed in mild defeat before shrugging. "Well just don't overdo it and start actually treating them like slaves."

He nodded in understanding. "I won't. Besides, part of my goal here is to find a way to break the contract. Though Celestine doesn't have any ideas."

She blinked a few times as she thought about what he said. "Celestine? You mean that super strong NPC?"

He nodded in affirmation. "Yes, her. She and Rem are personally acquainted. I can't tell you how or why in the open, so let it go for now."

Nanana pouted in disappointment. "Fine. Then you need to let Aqua and me join your Party."

Diablo nodded. "I was planning on you. Not sure how I feel about her…"

"She can be a meat shield."

"… Ah." Diablo then had another thought come to him. "Oh, that reminds me. How'd you get here, specifically?"

Nanana winced lightly before laughing weakly. "Oh, right, sorry. Well, even if I told you, you wouldn't believe me."

In a harsh deadpan, Diablo shot back, "I've become my video game character, summoned to a new world by an elf and Pantherian. Try me."

Nanana nodded in response and began her explanation. "I was a Ghost. I was murdered several years ago and only recently a Goddess summoned my spirit to Purgatory. I personally think it's because she's a lazy bitch."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow and sighed before rubbing the bridge of his nose. "… Well, that makes more sense than just about everything else that's been going on around me. Wait, if you've been a Ghost this whole time, how did you keep playing Yggdrasil?"

"I was a ghost, but I could still interact with physical objects when I wanted to. Including VR headsets. Which was good because if I couldn't, all I'd have left in the world would be pudding."

He remained silent for several more moments. "… Right… Call it a hunch, but I'm guessing that idiot is the goddess you're talking about?"

The woman folded her arms in a pout. "Yeah. But she's even lazier than Shiki. The only reason I was a ghost for so long is because she was too lazy to call my soul up to Purgatory."

Diablo felt a headache coming as he listened. "Right… that still leaves one thing. What happened when she 'called you up' as you put it?"

Nanana nodded as she continued. "Oh, right. Well Aqua presented me with three choices. Have my memories wiped and be reborn as a baby, go to Heaven and live as an eternal spirit with no emotions, or be sent to a new world with one boon of my choice to try and slay a Demon King causing strife."

Diablo stared at her quietly. "… Eh? … Well there's only two options I can think of."

"Really? Any ideas?"

"Me, or Krebskulm."

Nanana raised an eyebrow curiously. "You mean that Event Boss?"

"Yes. She's… very close by."

"Right…"

Before their conversation could continue, Shera shouted towards the duo. "Diablo! You coming?"

"I'll be there in a moment," he called back before signaling Nanana to follow him.

* * *

Soon after, the group arrived at the Guild building and made their way upstairs, where Bleu set eyes on Diablo and began to subtly tremble.

Diablo did his best to imitate a reassuring smile and waved to the frightened girl, who tremulously returned his wave.

Watching this exchange, Nanana shot Diablo a sideways glance. "What did you do…?"

Diablo averted his gaze from her as he answered. "Cut my finger and shot blood everywhere. Then I touched that measuring mirror and nearly blew the place to pieces."

She stared at him with a combination of disbelief, amusement, and a hint of disgust.

Diablo could very clearly feel the emotions bleeding through her expression. He decided to swiftly change the focus. "Oh, one quick thing. I should probably give you some of my memories."

"What for?"

"So you can read those papers."

Nanana shook her head in denial as Bleu handed her the documents. "Nah, I was given that information when Stupid put me here."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow in return. "… Lucky…"

Aqua huffed in irritation as she filled out hers. "Let's just get this over with so we can get registered."

"Hope you like bleeding," Diablo noted flatly, causing the goddess to pale as she looked at him.

"… Eehh!?"

* * *

Aqua pouted and whimpered as she held her thumb, despite the fact the injury had long since closed.

"N – Next is to measure your Level," Bleu explained, her discomfort around Diablo seeming to fade somewhat.

"Right!" Aqua exclaimed, her previous trepidation gone with the possibility of showing off as she proudly put her hand on the mirror.

Bleu studied the blue-haired girl's reflection carefully. "Looks like… Level Ten."

Aqua pulled her hand off and looked at the dog-eared girl in disbelief. "EH?! That can't be right!"

"Sounds right to me," Diablo and Nanana commented in unison, resulting a pout from the goddess.

"N – Next…" Bleu urged timidly seeing the situation getting unpleasant.

Nanana responded by putting her hand on the mirror, causing a reflection to appear.

Bleu studied it for a few moments and then nodded to herself. "Ooh. Level Twenty-Five."

Nanana was somewhat disappointed by that, though Shera hopped with joy. "Yay! I win!" Her glee was short-lived as Rem reminded the elf of her presence, turning her joy into disappointment.

Diablo just sighed as he patted her head gently. "There, there."

Shera just smiled blissfully as her ears wiggled, seemingly ignorant to the stares sent at her from Rem and Nanana.

"Now let's get a job."

"Right!" Shera cheered.

* * *

After dealing with the last of the paperwork, Diablo made his way into Sylvie's office and discussed potential jobs with her. To which the girl pulled one from her desk. Handing it to Diablo, she explained the details. "Hm… there's a few towns reporting bandits attacking them from the west."

"Is that so?"

"Yup. They seem relatively well-organized based on reports, and are wearing armor of some kind. But that's all we have. The remaining villages are offering a reward of one hundred thousand Vals if someone can take care of them."

"We'll take it," Diablo answered without any hesitation as he took the flier and left the room.

"Right then," Sylvie answered with a nod.

Aqua frowned slightly as she and the girls followed him.

* * *

Diablo, Shera, Nanana, Rem, and Aqua made their way through a lush forest west of Faltra, looking for the bandits in question.

After several long hours of walking, Aqua groaned heavily. "… Bored…!"

Diablo twitched an eyebrow and looked at her with irritation. "Why are you here again?"

Nanana answered swiftly, "Because she's helpless without me."

Aqua began complaining at the duo, though they ignored her, Diablo looking around for traces of the bandits. "Now then… Those bandits should be around here." His thoughts were immediately redirected when he heard screams of terror nearby and immediately raced off towards them.

Shera stopped in her tracks and turned to follow him. "H – Hey! Wait up!"

"Dammit," Rem cursed before chasing after the elf, Nanana and Aqua bringing up the rear.

Diablo broke the foliage onto a road and saw two girls cornered by several soldiers in silver and blue armor. '_Those aren't bandits… they're soldiers. I don't know what nation they're from though…_' He shook the attempts to understand the situation from his mind and raced towards the girls with his staff in hand. '_Doesn't matter! I need to kill them!_'

One of the soldiers raised his sword to strike the older girl as he approached.

Diablo hissed as he ran as fast as he could, the world around him almost seeming to move in slow motion. '_I won't make it…! There's only one thing I can think of from this distance that won't hurt the girls._' Diablo reached a hand out towards the swinging soldier, focusing all of his attention onto a single spot. "Grasp Heart!"

The soldier suddenly stopped, trembling.

The other looked at him, confused and angry. "Hey! What are you –?!"

Diablo felt something rubbery in his grasp, though he saw nothing there, and balled his hand into a fist, resulting in blood suddenly gushing from nowhere.

The soldier coughed violently before falling to the ground. Dead.

The second soldier stumbled back in horror. "H – Hey!" He then took notice of Diablo running up to him and prepared to fight. "Wh – What the?"

Seeing a clear opening, Diablo pointed his staff directly at the man. "Dark Bullet!" Several balls of black energy shot from the end of his staff and impacted the soldier, bursting in flameless explosions that shattered his armor in several places and sent him flying into a tree.

The older of the two girls, a blonde with a side ponytail and dark brow eyes, wearing a plain brown and orange dress with a form-fitting white top underneath, looked up at Diablo in awe.

Sighing in relief, Diablo turned to the girl. He then noticed a large wound on her back, likely from the soldiers he just killed.

The girl held her younger sister close defensively. "Please, just don't hurt Nemu!"

Diablo did not say a word as he pulled a bottle with a bright red liquid inside from his pocket and motioned towards her. "Here."

She looked at it curiously before taking it, Nemu trying to stop her.

"Don't drink it, Enri!" the girl pleaded.

"It will heal your injuries completely," Diablo explained.

Enri stared at it pensively for a moment before the pain in her back made the decision for her as she popped the top off the bottle and gulped down the contents. She blinked in surprise as she finished the small bottle. "… It's sweet…"

Nemu watched in awe as Enri's injury closed up completely and vanished.

"How's that?" Diablo asked.

Enri nodded with a smile. "I feel much better."

"Diablo!" Shera cried out desperately before lunging at him in a hug that planted his head in her bosom and knocked them both to the ground.

Enri watched the events unfold and found herself even more confused than before.

Rem grumbled as she and the other two joined up with Shera and Diablo, the elf pouting as Diablo stood up and put her on her feet.

"Come on, Shera, I have work to do," Diablo chided softly. Looking back at Enri and Nemu, Diablo aimed his palm towards them.

The sisters tensed in fear.

"Anti-Life Cocoon, Wall of Protection from Arrows." After a moment, a small green bubble of energy surrounded the girls. "There, that will keep you protected should anymore show up."

Enri looked at him in bewilderment before he pulled two long, curved horns from his pocket and tossed them to her. "Wh – What are these…?"

"Horn of the Goblin General."

Enri's entire body went stiff in horror. "G – Goblins…?!"

Diablo raised an eyebrow curiously. '_How strange. Why is she so frightened by Goblins? I'll need to look into this later._' "Yes. Intelligent and loyal soldiers and hunters, loyal to those that command them and the one who holds the horn. They mean you no harm."

"R – Right…" Enri answered, suspicious but accepting his explanation.

Diablo turned his attention to one of the corpses nearby and furrowed his brow in thought. '_I was able to use those spells successfully. What about this one?_' Motioning to it, he called out, "Death Knight!"

Suddenly a black mass appeared above the dead soldier and enveloped it.

'_It transforms the corpse!? That wasn't in the game!_'

After morphing and shifting, it transformed into a large, vaguely humanoid, skeletal monster with black armor and a long cape.

"Wow…" Shera commented in amazement.

Diablo then pointed to the remaining dead soldier. "Death Knight, slaughter everyone wearing that armor. Leave none standing."

The armored beast reared its head back and howled into the air before running off towards the other soldiers.

'_… What good is a defensive monster that runs off when ordered? Though I guess technically I told it to…_'

Nanana knelt down next to Enri and Nemu with a smile. "Don't worry, we're the good guys. And that monster is going to protect your friends and family. So, Diablo, shall we proceed?"

Diablo had Shera and Aqua stay by Enri and Nemu as added protection while he, Rem, and Nanana headed towards the village.

As they approached, Diablo saw numerous dead soldiers, the Death Knight charging towards the last few, chopping one in half before stomping on another.

"As vicious as I thought they'd be," Nanana commented as she watched.

"Agreed. Oh, Death Knight! Leave that one!" he ordered as he saw the Death Knight grab the last soldier, only for it to obey his command and drop the man.

The soldier instantly tried to escape, but the Death Knight stomped on his leg, crushing it under the beast's foot and pinning him.

"… Good," Diablo remarked, slightly uneasy with all the blood and gore. As he approached the pinned man, he noticed the villagers all huddled near the middle of the town square, terrified. He tried to ignore them as he walked up to the man, attempting to maintain a terrifying presence. "How annoying. I'm going to ask you some questions, and you're going to answer me, or my Death Knight will kill you, understood?"

The man nodded desperately.

"Who do you work for?"

He betrayed his initial willingness by remaining totally silent.

Diablo sighed in annoyance. "Staying silent isn't going to help you. Death Knight, his arm."

"W – Wait, don't – GAH!" the man begged before howling in pain as the massive beast effortlessly ripped his arm off.

Diablo felt somewhat guilty when he noticed Rem wince as she stood beside him, though he turned his attention back to the man. "Now, do I need to break your other limbs, or will you answer me?"

"S – Sla…" the man seemed to begin reflexively before changing his answer, "L – Lautreamont, the Lautreamont Knight Kingdom!"

Diablo narrowed his eyes coldly. "Be honest now," he warned, causing the man to pale, "Otherwise I'll have Death Knight remove your ability to procreate."

Rem then interjected on the interrogation. "What he's wearing is Lautreamont armor."

Diablo nodded in understanding, but argued, "Then why start to say something else? If he really was part of Lautreamont then why not say it first and not about to say something else?"

Taking the momentary distraction, the soldier pulled a dagger from his waist and slashed his own throat, resulting in him bleed out almost immediately.

Diablo twitched an eyebrow in annoyance before kicking the man's helmet. "… Fucking hell. Tch… and now there's not even one left for me to send as a message. Useless bastard. Oh well."

As the situation seemed to calm down, one of the villagers gathered in the middle of the town approached Diablo nervously. "U – Um, you… is that your monster?"

Diablo turned to the man and nodded. "Yes. I ordered him to butcher each and every one of these scum for their actions."

The man immediately fell to his knees in relief and joy. "Thank you! P – Please, tell me your name."

Diablo opened his mouth to begin speaking but thought about it for a moment. '_If I just tell him Diablo, it'd be truthful. But…_' he wondered as he glanced at Nanana before looking back to the man. '_If there are any other players in this world, I might be able to make contact with them if the guild's name is known widely._' "Ainz Ooal Gown," he answered proudly.

Nanana put a hand over her mouth in attempt to hold back a snicker. "Using the guild's name, eh?"

He responded by abruptly smacking her on the head, though his expression was unchanged. "My name is Ainz Ooal Gown, and this is Tabula."

Nanana looked up at him with mild annoyance, though did not speak.

"We heard the reports of these mongrels attacking villages and came to help." Diablo was surprised and concerned when the villagers looked at him suspiciously and began whispering amongst themselves. "Of course, I will be returning to one of the Guilds with this for payment. So I expect the Chief's signature."

Many of the villagers, the man who approached him included, sighed in relief at Diablo's proclamation.

That left him even more confused. '_So they're less suspicious if they think I'm doing it solely for monetary gain? Odd._' "Though I am quite curious about this soldier's attempt to cover up the name he was going to say. Sla something."

"H – Huh? But that's Lautreamont armor."

Diablo narrowed his eyes further before looking at the man directly. "Are you this village's chief?"

"Y – Yes, I am, sir."

Nodding, he added, "Come, let us speak in your home. Aqua! Shera! You can stop hiding."

Shera popped up from a bush near the battlefield with a smile. "Okay!"

Aqua just groaned as she stood up as well.

* * *

The chief led Diablo and his group to his home, a small building near the back of the town, though it was still larger than all the rest.

He took the group to his dining room, which was furnished with just a square table and several chairs. Within moments he again had his head bowed over the table towards Diablo. "Thank you so much!"

Diablo waved a hand dismissively as he sat down. "That's enough groveling." '_Geez… having to act like this all the time is tiring… Though if I don't, I have a feeling things wouldn't go well._'

The chief nodded as he sat down as well. "R – Right. How much do you want?"

Diablo shook his head in return. "I'll get what I need from the Guild. From you all I'd like information. Namely who the Lautreamont Knight Kingdom is and what Sla could mean."

The chief motioned to a woman, likely his wife, who set a large map on the table.

Diablo was surprised as the entire continent, as Rem had mentioned, in fact appeared to be in the shape of a dragon lying on its side.

"R – Right. The Lautreamont Kingdom is to the south. The only thing I really know about them is that their emperor routinely executes nobles."

"I see… and Sla?"

The Chief sighed as he looked over the map. "Hm… the best I can think of is the Slane Theocracy. They're a religious country that worships the Six Great Gods. They're the most powerful of the Arc Strada nations, tied with Zephyros, only because of its machinery."

Diablo nodded in affirmation. "Then it's obvious. Those soldiers are from the Theocracy disguised as ones from the Kingdom."

The portly man frowned in confusion. "But why?"

Diablo put a hand on his chin in thought. "There are many reasons. One of the most likely is to cause strife between Lautreamont and Re-Estize."

"Ah…"

"Or lead someone into a trap."

That seemed to worry the man even more.

"Though who? Do you know much about the relations between the nations?"

The chief shook his head disappointedly. "I'm sorry, I don't. Though I'm somewhat surprised you don't. N – Not that I mean any disrespect."

Diablo put a hand up respectfully. "None is taken." '_Craap… what kind of backstory should I tell this guy? That I'm a Demon Lord summoned by these two…? I don't know how he'd take that… Maybe that I'm just a traveling magic caster? But then I'd need to explain the slaves…_' "I only just arrived from far away after my ship crashed a week ago."

"O – Oh. I understand. The only thing I can really tell you is that Lautreamont and Zephyros had been at war for centuries, with Re-Estize always getting caught in the middle. Or rather, with our villages getting caught in the middle."

The man's choice of words caught his attention. "Had?"

Nodding, the chief continued, "Yes. About five years ago, a treaty was signed between Lautreamont and Zephyros, with Re-Estize as the mediator. At least, I think that's the word for it."

"I see."

* * *

After their conversation ended, the surviving villagers went about beginning to repair buildings and bury those who had died.

Diablo frowned as he saw Enri and Nemu crouched in front of two graves that were most likely their parents, tears pouring from their eyes. Holding a small, purple and green rod in his hand, Diablo thought to himself, '_I could easily revive these people with my Wand of Resurrection… but someone able to revive the dead would attract a lot of trouble… Best not to. For now you'll need to be satisfied that I rescued the village._' He sighed as his chosen persona yet again got in the way of his desires.

Nanana noticed his troubled expression and frowned in concern, slowly moving her hand towards his when Diablo suddenly started looking around suspiciously.

Diablo noticed the villagers who weren't helping with burial efforts beginning to gather nearby, gossiping about something. '_Great… another problem. Just great._' He decided to head off any problems by talking to the chief directly. "Chief, is something wrong?"

The man turned in surprise and stumbled over his words somewhat. "Oh, Lord Ainz. W – Well, some of the workers reported seeing knight-like people coming towards Carne Village."

The people gathered around looked to Diablo with wanting expressions.

Diablo sighed as he quickly figured out what they wanted to ask. "I understand. Have the people gather around your house. The Chief and I will address these knights. If they prove hostile, I will deal with them." Looking to the Death Knight, he ordered, "Go and guard them."

Nodding, the beast made its way towards the villagers, who were understandably frightened of the beast, and stood in front of them, shield raised.

"Now let us go," Diablo called out as everyone prepared.

* * *

After several minutes of waiting, Diablo saw a group of soldiers approaching, led by a few on horseback. '_Huh? Their armor's different. Must be a different Kingdom._'

The one in front of the group, presumably the leader, a strong looking man with short brown hair and several scars, clad in ornate red and silver armor, pulled his horse to a stop, the others following suit. He looked at Diablo in thought before announcing, "I am the Head Warrior of the Re-Estize Kingdom, Gazef Stronoff. I am here under orders from the king to hunt down the Lautreamont soldiers massacring villages."

"The imposters are all dead," Diablo declared.

Gazef frowned in confusion before looking at the chief. "Chief, who is this man?"

The man stammered slightly in his word before Diablo interrupted him, "O – Oh, this is –"

"Ainz Ooal Gown. I was traveling when I saw this village being attacked."

Nanana gave a light snicker at him. '_Liar…_'

"So I decided to deal with these Slane Theocracy thugs."

Gazef raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Slane? We were told the soldiers were from Lautreamont."

Diablo nodded in understanding. "I have no doubt, they had matching armor. But the one I tried to interrogate slipped up and began to say Slane Theocracy before changing it to Lautreamont. Then he slit his own throat, preventing me and my summon from gaining more information on their orders."

"I see…" Gazef remarked in thought before dismounting his horse and smiling to Diablo. "Well, that being said, mere words cannot express my gratitude at saving this village."

Diablo's composure remained placid on the outside. Inside, however… '_This aura… it's deafening! I'm not used to this kind of praise!_'

Nanana was the only one who picked up on his anxiety, causing her to sigh softly.

"Don't worry. It was mere coincidence," he replied to the armored man.

One of the soldiers suddenly ran up to Gazef frantically. "Sir!"

Gazef turned to the man, irritated. "I'm in the middle of something. This had better be important."

"It is, sir! There's a large group of people surrounding the village! They have us completely boxed in."

"So they _were _bait…" Diablo noted as he narrowed his eyes.

Hearing him, Gazef turned to Diablo in confusion.

The horned man looked at Gazef before questioning, "You said you were Re-Estize's head warrior? That explains everything."

"Pardon? I don't follow."

Nanana smirked subtly towards Diablo. '_Scheming and strategizing, Momo's favorite things._'

Diablo explained, "They lure you in with some expendable soldiers disguised in the colors of another nation, then strike you full force and eliminate a major threat."

Gazef snarled as he took in Diablo's words before slamming his fists together in frustration. "… Dammit… and I fell right into it."

Diablo put up a hand to dismiss his concerns. "You're trained and paid to fight, not to think. It's your superiors who are at fault for this blunder. That is… tell me, would any of your superiors benefit from your death?"

Gazef let out a heavy sigh. "Too many to count."

That same soldier grit his teeth before turning to Gazef. "Dammit, Lieutenant, I told you this would happen! It's why those damned nobles sent us with only a contingent of fifty men to take on what was supposedly an invading army!"

Diablo shook his head as he argued, "All that was here was a platoon's worth at most. Not enough to kill, but certainly enough to weaken a group of skilled fighters."

"Dammit…" Gazef cursed.

"I suggest we take heed in the buildings and try to gauge our enemy's numbers. Then plan on how to deal with them."

Gazef nodded in agreement.

* * *

Diablo, Shera, Nanana, Rem, Aqua, Gazef, and the villagers hid in the village's largest storehouse as the enemy approached.

Peering through one of the thing slats in the wall, Diablo saw a large number of people in robes wielding staffs encircling the area.

Gazef growled angrily as he saw them. "Dammit… it seems you were completely right. Only the Slane Theocracy has the manpower to send out that many mages at once."

Diablo kept his attention on the soldiers as they began preparing spells and incantations, but questioned Gazef, "Hmm… what type of magic do they specialize in?"

Gazef could only shrug. "I… don't really know. To my best knowledge, it's all some form of holy magic, judging by those angels they have under their command."

That got Diablo's attention, causing him to raise an eyebrow to the man. '_… Oh this will be so easy._' Looking back out the window, he saw what the soldiers were summoning, an army of vaguely humanoid, silver and yellow, mechanical creatures that floated above the ground wielding swords made of bright gold energy. '_Wait… those angels… those are Archangel Flame. A monster from Yggdrasil. This will be even easier than I thought._'

Gazef slammed his fist against the wall in frustration. "To think even the Slane Theocracy wants my head."

Diablo put a hand on the man's arm and pulled it away from the wall. "Don't make too much noise or they'll find us. Any Military would want to eliminate the greatest threat to them as efficiently as possible."

Gazef stared pensively at the surrounding forces before glancing at Diablo. Sighing in resignation, Gazef turned his full attention to the horned man. "… Sir Gown, I'd like to hire you, if possible."

"For?" Diablo responded, keeping his attention on the Slane soldiers.

"To help against these bastards."

Glancing at Gazef with a raised eyebrow, Diablo returned his gaze to the enemy as he nodded. "Very well."

Gazef let out a whisper of relief. "I have nothing to pay you with for now, but I promise that I will ensure the kingdom pays you any price you ask."

"I will hold you to that," Diablo added as he moved away from the window.

"You plan on fighting Slane?" Rem asked, her ears folded against her head in worry.

Seeing this, Diablo merely huffed confidently. "A massacre is no fight. Head Warrior, you and your men remain here."

"But, Sir Gown," Gazef argued in disbelief.

"Do not worry. I will be fine."

Rem stepped up to Diablo as he made for the door. "Shall we come with you?"

Diablo looked at her in thought before smirking. "Sure. You'll have front row seats to a grand show," he retorted as he made for the door, Shera and the others following after him.

* * *

On the edge of the village, the leader of the attacking soldiers, a man with his blonde hair slicked back, clad in regal blue robes with a nasty smirk, watched in confusion as Diablo's group approached him calmly. "This trap was for Gazef Stronoff, so what's this Draph doing here?"

Getting a suitable distance from the enemies, Diablo slammed the end of his staff on the ground, creating a loud whack in the air, before calling out proudly, "Attention fools from the Slane Theocracy. I will give you all only one warning. Leave now or fertilize these fields with your corpses."

The man puffed defiantly before seeing Diablo's staff. "What, I'm supposed to be scared of some Draph that fancies himself a Magic Caster?"

'_So even a race like Draphs are known here? Interesting._' "If you had any sense you will be. And… who are you exactly?"

That question seemed to rile him up. "I am Nigun Grid Luin, captain of the Sunlight Scripture! The fact that you do not know me insults my intelligence, Demon! So, do me a favor and just die quietly. Once we're done with you and kill Gazef Stronoff, we'll kill everyone in that village as well."

Diablo clenched his fingers at the man's declaration, but kept his expression still. "Corpses it is then. Though… why should I bother dirtying my hands doing it myself though?"

Nigun slumped where he stood at Diablo's retort.

Diablo's placid expression morphed into a bloodthirsty smirk. "I'll give you this, you have a lot of balls, boasting about how you intend to massacre the village I put so much time into saving. But now? You're all dead men, and I know just how to wipe you all out."

Nigun twitched an eyebrow at Diablo's seemingly boastful confidence. "… Kill him."

At once, the numerous Angels all dove towards Diablo, ready to attack.

However, Diablo merely pointed a single finger at the army of automatons. "Subjugation of Heaven."

"Wh – What…?" Nigun stuttered as the angels immediately stopped where they were.

Diablo's smirk widened into a full grin of malice at the man's fear. "Now then, fools of the Slane Theocracy. How would you like to be slaughtered by your own Summons? Lest of course you have a secret weapon to turn the tide I suggest you lay down and die."

Nigun looked up at the angel floating directly behind him as it too began moving to Diablo's back. "H – He's controlling the angels… how?!"

"Oooohh…!" Shera cooed in awe.

Aqua's jaw dropped, dumbfounded. "Whoa… Maybe he can…"

Diablo raised a hand high into the air, causing the angels to stop and turn towards the Slane soldiers. "Now Angels… slaughter the Slane forces!" he hollered as he swung his hand down, resulting in the angels all charging at the soldiers.

Nigun watched in horror as the angels turned on his subordinates.

A group of three shot balls of fire at the machines, but their swords easily knocked the attacks away before cleaving them apart.

Another created a barrier for his allies, but the large angel used the giant mace in its hand to smash the barrier and crush the man into pulp, allowing the smaller angels to rip the others apart.

Nigun clenched his teeth before reaching into his coat. "No… I won't let it end like this!" He then pulled a large, jagged, luminescent crystal from his pocket.

Watching the proceedings, Diablo raised an eyebrow in thought. '_So, they have command over monsters from Yggdrasil, can use spells from it, and even have items from it. I suppose this could be…_'

Nigun began cackling madly as the rest of his soldiers were being butchered. "I'll smite you with the church's most powerful weapon!" Throwing the crystal to the ground, it shattered and caused an eruption of light in all directions before a massive, multi-story angel appeared. "Dominion Authority!"

"I – It's huge!" Shera shouted in amazement as she tried to hide behind Diablo.

Diablo stared at the summoned beast in bored annoyance. "… Is that it? Throwing a new Angel at the problem? Very well then. You have chosen the form of your executioner."

Nigun's confidence completely evaporated as he rebuffed desperately, "Wh – What? Dominion Authority is beyond the control of any mortal not blessed by the Six Great –!"

"Oh shut up already!" Diablo interrupted, growing tired of the man's preaching. "Dominion Authority is well within the range of power below me for me to make it my own." Pointing to the giant angel, he called out his spell. "Subjugation of Heaven!"

Nigun's face went white with terror as the Dominion Authority stiffened before it began to turn to face him instead. "What!? No! That's impossible! There's no way some mere Magic Caster can –!"

Diablo again interrupted the petrified man, "I am no mere Magic Caster, you fool. I am Ainz Ooal Gown! A Supreme Being! Now Dominion Authority! Strike him down with Holy Smite!"

"Wait, no!" Nigun begged before a large pillar of white energy shot down from a large, ornate circle floating in the sky, encircling Nigun and the few soldiers he had left, vaporizing them all.

Diablo sighed in fatigue as Dominion Authority began to disappear, turning back into its crystalline form, along with the Archangel Flames. "I did warn them."

"Wh – Whoa… you're incredible, Diablo!" Shera exclaimed in astonishment, her ears wiggling excitement, Rem next to her, nodding in silent amazement.

Aqua silently stared at the man. '_He can control Angels… the soldiers of gods… Meaning he can help me get out of here! Oh, I've got to do my best to get in his good graces… But… do I deserve…?_' She shook her head fiercely. '_Of course I do! I deserve my position back!_'

Diablo flexed his shoulders in discomfort as he picked up the various crystals around him. '_I still have access to my Inventory, but I wonder if I can add items to it._'

After focusing for a moment, a purple, intricate magic circle appeared in the air in front of him, which he dropped the crystals into, causing them to vanish. After waiting for a moment, he reached behind his cloak and, as expected, managed to pull one of them from his Inventory. '_So I still have access to it and can put things in it at will. Perfect._' His theorizing was cut short when he noticed Rem staring at him. "Yes Rem?"

"Nothing…" she remarked uneasily.

* * *

"It's… over already?" Gazef asked, dumbfounded as Diablo and the others returned.

Diablo merely nodded in response.

The villagers gasped as he walked into the store room.

"They were foolish in their overreliance on Summons." Diablo twitched an eyebrow when he noticed the chief next to him, kneeling in a position that was clearly prayer. Putting his hand up, Diablo chided, "Do not pray. I am no god, merely someone who was passing through."

The chief trembled slightly but stood and nodded uncertainly. "I – If you say so…"

"Good. Now if that is all we shall take our leave."

"R – Right…" Gazef answered in surprise.

* * *

**And thus concludes Demon Lord's Adventurers' second chapter! Hope everyone enjoyed it; be sure to let me know with a review if you did. If you were confused, unsure, or simply have questions about anything, leave your concerns in a review and I will do what I can to address them in the next reviewer response. If there were characters you do not recognize, tell me which ones they are and I will answer what series they are from. This story has so many characters it would be rather troublesome to list every single new one that shows up, especially when most readers know some of them. That said, if you did not enjoy the chapter, leave a review with your gripes, but might I suggest a better use of your time? Anyway, that is all from me, so until next time, bye-bye!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter III**

**I could sit here and waffle on about why it's been so long since I last updated, three months last I checked, but I do not want to waste any more of your time. So, I apologize for the delay and have returned with new material. I am glad that the previous chapter has received the reception it has, and hope this one receives more of the same. Thanks to Bakuto Masaki for always supporting me in all my insanity, and on with the reviewer responses.**

**Fortitude501: That sums it up acceptably well, though there's also much more that has yet to be shown.**

**duskrider: Some were.**

**OberonHK96: Who he is in real life is a big part of that, though I won't say more than that.**

**Skull Flame: No, he is not. I can't really think of a purpose for the skeleton form, but I'll see if I can come up with something.**

**That she is.**

**She's headed for a huge wall made of fail. The wreckage that follows remains to be seen.**

**It most certainly is.**

**correnhimself316: Gap Moe is still there for certain. As for Albedo, yes and no. You'll just have to wait and see.**

**Oh Diablo is in for quite the series of headaches, that is undeniable. And yes, a sea of pussy awaits.**

**DreamWeaverGod: I don't know if I'd personally go that far, but I certainly appreciate the praise.**

**superpierce: :) It's a secret.**

**In canon he specialized in Water and Ice-Type magic. He's more well-rounded here.**

**KRKing: Long Love Moedred!**

**DragonKing0117: I have the first two volumes, and after re-reading, you're right that canonically it is resistant to all forms of magic, but I decided to nerf it ever-so-slightly for my own purposes.**

**Xanxux: Stinking Goblins!**

**Eher: Her design and overall personality is based on Maou from MaoYuu, specifically the manga adaptation "Hero, Become Mine". Just calling her Maou doesn't sit well with me, so Bakuto and I came up with a name for her. One that has some... unintentional deeper meaning as will become apparent later.**

**Phew! Long one this time, to be expected with how long I have been away, though. Anyway, on with the main event!**

* * *

Sylvie snickered as she sat at her desk, opposite Diablo and his group. "Word on the road is that a man named Ainz Ooal Gown saved the town."

"Oh?" Diablo asked, feigning intrigue.

Shrugging with a smirk, Sylvie responded, "It was supposed to be you, but oh well."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow. "Right…"

Pulling out a small pouch, she motioned towards him with a knowing smile. "I'll give you the payment. Make sure Mr. Gown gets it, hehe."

"Sure… alright, let's head home," he urged to the others, feeling an undesirable prying from the Grasswalker's gaze.

* * *

Shortly, the group returned to their room in the inn, and Diablo sat down with the bag of Vals. "Okay, now to divide it up."

As he counted out the amounts into several equally sized piles, Nanana confusedly commented, "Huh? But we didn't really do anything."

"And?" he remarked blandly as he continued counting.

Nanana frowned slightly as she stared at him. "… Right…"

Diablo glanced up and noticed Aqua staring at him, puzzled. "Something wrong?"

"N – Nothing at all!" Aqua responded cheerily, though clearly forcing her smile into an uncomfortable shape.

Diablo frowned at this before sighing. '_Bullshit… guess I'll just leave it there for now._' After handing out the coin to everyone, he pulled the crystals and the staff obtained during the battle. "Now… what to do with these?"

Aqua looked like she wanted to say something but kept silent.

"Hmm… Definitely keeping the Dominion's Crystal," he remarked as he put the large blue crystal into the back of his cape where it proceeded to disappear.

"What about the rest?" Shera asked, tilting her head curiously.

After a moment of thought, Diablo turned to his cat-eared compatriot. "Rem, you're a Summoner, are you not?"

Her ears pulled back slightly in confusion, Rem nodded silently.

Holding up one of the larger of the white crystals, Principality Observation, and the summoning staff, he questioned, "Want the staff or the Principality Observation?"

Rem looked at him slightly confused before taking Principality's crystal. "Are you really fine with me having this?"

Diablo nodded in return. "I won't be around all the time. A strong Summon to protect you will make things easier."

"R – Right…" she stammered lightly, her cheeks tinted.

Aqua remained quiet still, as if waiting for something.

Holding up the staff, Diablo turned his attention to his fellow dimensional traveler. "You want the Staff, Nanana?"

Nanana shook her head with a smirk before putting a hand on her other bicep. "Nah I'm good. I'm more focused on my specialty."

Diablo blinked curiously before raising an eyebrow. "Which is?"

Without saying a word, Nanana reared back an arm before slamming it into Diablo's face, sending him flying hard enough to embed in the wall.

Shera and Rem gaped in disbelief.

Diablo twitched an eyebrow before looking at the girl as he pulled himself from the wall. "Ow." Wiping off some wood chips, he retorted, "You could've just said punching."

Nanana just grinned before flexing her arms, causing her orbs to shift in her loose-fitting top. "This was more fun."

Diablo felt his eyes glued to the sight. "Ah." After tearing his attention from the globes, he formed a thought. "Hm… come to think of it, I suppose you lot could all use a quest to train your skills a little, no? In fact, we can get one perfect for weak cannon fodder next."

The purple-haired girl twitched an eyebrow as she stared at him. "… I think I just got dissed…"

Diablo returned bluntly, "If you want, we can go after a monster like a Hydra instead."

"Nope, cannon fodder will do!" Nanana replied happily.

* * *

With their goal in mind, the group made their way to the Guild building and looked for a suitable quest.

After spending a few moments looking, Diablo saw one that seemed simple. "Hm… giant toads. This should be easy enough."

Nanana just sent him a sideways glance. "… You just want to see us covered in slime."

He was completely befuddled by her accusation. "Slime?"

"You know, saliva."

Diablo just shrugged. "They're just giant toads. I doubt they're as bad as you think."

* * *

Diablo stood on a hill with Shera and Nanana, watching as Aqua and Rem fled from a gargantuan, truck-sized toad with bright pink skin, hopping after them and making the ground shake, knocking Aqua to the ground. "… I stand corrected."

"Hheellpp!" Aqua shrieked as she shambled to her feet and tried to catch up with Rem.

"Nanana, Shera," he urged.

Shera lurched back, her ears drooping. "But it's all slimy…!"

Diablo returned, "… Have you forgotten your bow?"

"Oh right," Shera remarked simply before drawing her bow.

Nanana just slapped a hand over her face in exasperation.

Watching the toad, Shera nocked an arrow and pulled the string, focusing her sight on its head before releasing the shot, the arrow flying at near supersonic speeds and jamming into the toad's left eye, the force of the impact causing it to burst with blood like a water balloon.

Diablo still found himself surprised by her accuracy. "… Great shot."

Shera just smiled happily as her ears wiggled.

The toad, having stopped its pursuit and half-blinded, looked around frantically for the source of its pain, and saw the trio on the hill. Almost instantly it launched out its mucus-coated tongue.

Diablo reflexively grabbed Shera and pulled her close, jumping back, causing the appendage to slam into Nanana's abdomen, sticking to her. "Blagh!" she groaned as the impact knocked the wind out of her before she was instantly dragged to the beast.

"Nanana!" he exclaimed as she disappeared into its mouth. Putting his hand towards the back of his cape, a purple light shone as his staff appeared before he sighed and put it back. '_No… I need to let them handle this…_'

Almost as if on cue, Nanana managed to force her upper half out of the creature's maw, snarling as she raised her right arm high in the air. "Fuck. You! And your race!" she cursed as she slammed her arm down with all her might, caving in the beast's skull, making it drop like a sack of potatoes and spraying yet more blood from its empty eye socket.

Diablo sighed in mild relief as Nanana pulled herself from the dead monster's maw. "Good to see at least two competent fighters."

Rem just huffed derisively as she folded her arms.

Pointing to her, he remarked bluntly, "Toad behind you."

She mumbled in confusion before turning, only for a second giant toad to grab her. "UNYA!"

Diablo just sighed as Nanana rushed towards the beast.

* * *

Rem, Nanana, and Aqua all sat in a pile, dripping with slime, the second giant toad lying on the ground with a flattened skull.

Shera, completely untouched by the beasts, stood next to Diablo, terrified.

The horned man sighed in exasperation. "That… could have gone better."

Nanana shot a glare at Diablo that said everything she thought without opening her mouth. "I told you so".

Diablo raised an eyebrow in thought. "Hmm? You want to go hunt an Elder Dragon?"

The girl twitched an eyebrow before folding her arms under her bust in frustration.

"Good," he noted before putting a hand on his chin. "We're going to need to hire someone with better ranged abilities."

"Why can't you help!?" Aqua demanded desperately.

"The whole point of taking this quest is to give you four some combat experience. If I helped you there'd be no benefit," he answered bluntly.

Aqua frowned in confusion at his answer. "… Why…?"

"Because, I won't always be there, and I don't want you getting hurt just because I'm not around, got it?"

The blue-haired woman stared in bewilderment. '_… He… he's lying… right?_'

"You alright?" Shera questioned, seeing the befuddled expression on Aqua's face.

"O – Of course, I'm just fine!" she responded instantly.

Diablo frowned suspiciously but chose to drop the matter. "Let's return to the city. You three need a bath and we need to collect the money for those two frogs."

* * *

Later, after collecting the paltry reward and dividing it up, and giving Rem and the others time to get cleaned, Diablo sat on the bed in thought. "Geez… So that's still four frogs to go… Well… I'm going to go look for a new recruit. You four rest."

Shera's ears drooped as he stood up. "Okay…"

Seeing this, Diablo looked at her, confused. "What's wrong?"

Nanana snickered and retorted, "Me thinks she wants to go with you."

Diablo frowned slightly and turned back to the elf, seeing her shyly fidgeting her fingers. Sighing, he called out her name.

"Y – Yes?!" she answered almost before he finished speaking.

"Come with me," he ordered as he made for the door.

"Sure!" Shera chirped as she hopped to her feet and followed him.

The dark-skinned man let out a quiet sigh through his nose as he walked. '_And I was hoping to get some time alone to think… Oh well…_'

* * *

Diablo walked through the streets with an uncomfortable frown on his lips, Shera humming happily as she hugged his arm into the seemingly endless crevice between her melons. '_Why is she doing this...? I'm going to break character if she doesn't let up with those melons! Calm down! This is like walking with Sinoula! …_' His eyes traveled down to the obliviously cheery elf. '_No it's not! At least with Sinoula I could release the tension when we got home to the guildhall!_'

After a moment, Shera glanced up at him, seeming to sense his discomfort. "Is something wrong, Diablo?"

"N – No, nothing at all. I am simply trying to spot the best candidate," he remarked as he looked around the area near the Guild building.

"Oh," she answered simply before going back to her humming. After a short silence she spoke up once more. "… Hey, Diablo…"

He responded with only a hum as he walked around the city, Shera holding tightly to his arm the entire time.

"Do you… do you really think I did well against that monster?"

Taking his attention from his search, Diablo took his free hand and gently patted her head. "Your aim was exceptional."

Shera looked at him with surprise before smiling brightly as her ears wiggled happily.

Diablo forced a light smile, hoping the wheat-color of his skin would prevent his blush from being seen.

"You know, you may be a Demon Lord, but you're really nice…"

"Oh?"

"Everyone says the Demon Lords are all bad people, but if they're like you, I think they're lying."

Diablo frowned slightly before arguing, "I am not nice."

Shera looked at up at him, visibly confused in a way he found adorable.

"What…?"

"But you are."

"No, I am not. I merely act on my own self-interest."

"But you're helping me, Rem, and everyone else get stronger."

"As I said."

Shera furrowed her brow further. "I don't get it…"

Diablo twitched an eyebrow as he thought. '_Right… think… what's the right answer for a Demon Lord…?_' After thinking for a while, he came to a seemingly suitable answer. "The stronger you become, the more useful you are to me."

"Right… Diablo, you're a Draph, aren't you?"

"I am."

"And a Demon Lord?"

"Yes."

"So… a Demon Lord who used to be a Draph?"

"Used to be?"

"I heard that when something becomes a Demon Lord, it stops being what it was before."

Diablo tried to hide his deepfelt confusion. '_Is that… really a thing?_' "I see. I suppose if I tried to explain it in mortal terms, I am both and neither at the same time." '_God that was stupid!_'

Shera stared at him in awe.

'_But… I think she bought it…?_' "G – Good that you understand."

"I – I don't quite get it, but it sounds cool."

"R – Right. Now, let's keep searching, I'll get you a treat on the way home."

"Yippee!"

* * *

After searching for more time around the Guild building and nearby blocks, to the point the sun was falling over the horizon, Diablo grumbled in annoyance. "Geez… Is there even a single mage here?"

"There's Rem," Shera noted obliviously.

Diablo waved a hand in response. "I meant besides her." He then raised an eyebrow in thought. '_Oh wait, the Mage Guild. But… that's where that smartass is from… and I'd rather not deal with that ignorant ass._' As they continued walking, a commotion nearby caught his attention. Looking towards a small gathering place across the way, he saw Galluk and a few other mages, drunkenly shouting and talking with each other. "Ah, just some insects."

Galluk looked up from his drunken stupor and saw Diablo and Shera, causing the man to snarl. "Hah…? Oh look, it's the Draph who thinks he's a bigshot…"

"Did the insect just say something?" Diablo shot back, giving only a side glance to the petulant man.

Galluk growled before shouting, "Tch… don't act tough… You're just a lowly Demihuman!"

"I'm sorry what did you say? I don't speak vermin."

"Why you…" the increasingly enraged man hissed.

Pulling his arm from Shera's lovely chasm and wrapping it around her shoulder, though feeling mild trepidation in doing so, Diablo urged, "Come, Shera. Let's head for the Guild and see if we can find someone worth our time."

"Right!" Shera nodded cheerily, oblivious to the tension in the air.

"Don't ignore me you piece of shit!" Galluk cursed as he threw the ale bottle in his grasp.

"Owie!"

Diablo stopped as he heard the bottle impact something before bouncing to the ground and shattering. He turned to his side and saw Shera clutching the back of her head with a small trail of blood in her golden blonde hair.

"That hurt…"

He turned his full attention to Galluk, his crimson red eyes boiling. "You have my undivided attention, worm," Diablo warned with venom in his voice.

Galluk stumbled back, sweating with fear. "I – I'm not scared of you…!"

"An error in judgment I shall soon correct."

Galluk's knees nearly gave out before he pulled a moderately sized red crystal from his robe. "I – I'll put you in your place, you stupid Demihuman! You're all just trash!"

"Says the vermin," Diablo snorted back, standing in front of Shera.

One of Galluk's cohorts stared in disbelief. "G – Galluk, you're going to use a Summon in the city?!"

The horned man huffed dismissively. "Let him summon whatever weakling he has. It will do him no good."

"I'll make you regret those words, you damned monster!" Galluk howled as he smashed the crystal on the floor, flames swirling up in a gust in front of him, condensing into the shape of a massive, quadrupedal reptile with fire flickering on its edges. "Meet my most powerful Summon, a Level Thirty Salamander!" Galluk declared with insane pride.

Diablo glanced aside at the beast for a moment. "Level Thirty you say…?" he remarked before sighing."

Galluk, cackling loudly, taunted, "Are you scared yet?! Bow down and I'll consider having pity!"

"That is… so weak. Too weak for me to waste my time with." Reaching into his cloak, he pulled the massive crystal that held Dominion Authority. "Here, play with this weakling." He dropped the stone which shattered and flashed to life, the massive mechanical angel whirring to life as it hovered over the town square.

Galluk finally lost his composure and fell to the ground at the sight of the monster. "Wh – What is that…?!"

"Dominion Authority. A Level One Hundred-Fifty Summon."

The conceited mage almost passed out. "O – One-Fifty!? That's impossible!"

"No. What's impossible is an idiot like you believing he had a chance." Diablo raised a hand high in the sky. "Dominion Authority," he ordered as he swung his arm down. "Javelin Rain."

Dominion Authority spread its arms out wide, causing numerous orbs of light to appear in the sky that fluttered and flickered before forming long spears that shot down in a shower, turning the Salamander into a mere memory, sending explosions and debris in all directions.

After a few seconds Diablo waved a hand, returning Dominion Authority to its crystal, ending the bombardment.

The completely terrified Galluk slowly pulled himself up from behind a piece of the road, shaking like a leaf as he looked at the glowing crater where his Summon had once stood. "Wh – What the hell…?"

Diablo, an expression of disinterested anger in his eyes, stowed the crystal away as he looked at the cowering mage. "Maybe now you'll understand what the difference between us is." Turning to his injured comrade, he pulled her to her feet. "Come on Shera. Let's get you healed up."

"R – Right," she stammered as he guided her.

Galluk collapsed to the ground as they walked away. "You damned Demihuman… I'll make you pay…"

"First Aid," he chanted as he put a hand to the back of her head, a soft green glow flowing out before fading, her injury gone.

"It's gone…" she commented before smiling. "It's all better now."

"Good."

"What's with that jerk?" she asked, puffing her cheeks.

"He's a racial supremacist. They're everywhere. Any city, in any nation, on any continent, in any world will have them. And they aren't limited by race either."

"Even your world?" she asked with surprise.

"Oh big time. The whole world once got into a war because of one. So just try to ignore them, unless they get violent like that fool. Then smash them down with every ounce of force necessary. That will shut them up."

* * *

Bleu, trembling slightly as Diablo walked into the Guild building so late at night, listened to his request. "P – Party recruitment…?" she asked tremulously.

Diablo nodded, sweating slightly at her fear. '_I guess I can't blame her… I did nearly blow the place to pieces last time…_' "Yes," he answered in a tone he hoped was both firm but not imposing to the dog-eared girl. "There is no need to be scared my dear…"

Bleu's ears relaxed slightly, though she still kept herself somewhat turned away from him. "J – Just don't make anything else blow up…"

Diablo frowned slightly, upset with himself for terrifying the girl. '_I want to be seen as a Demon Lord for sure, but the girl being that scared just… makes me feel like a bad person._' Seeing only one option, he slowly reached a hand out to the quivering girl, who winced in terror.

However, she stopped when she felt his palm gently on her head, softly patting her hair.

'_Okay… reassuring but imposing… such a hard dichotomy!_' "I quite like this place, so I assure you I won't do anything to endanger it."

Bleu stared up silently at him, her cheeks slowly filling with color as her stubby tail began swishing back and forth gently.

'_… Success?_'

Bleu then pointed to a large board across the room from her desk where he had originally taken the quest for the toad killing. "Just post your invitation there… and any passing Adventurers will see it…"

Putting his hand down, not noticing the girl's slight disappointment, he nodded. "Thank you, Bleu."

Bleu nodded slowly with a small, blushing smile, her sisters nearby staring silently.

Heading to the request board, Diablo looked it over in thought. "Hm… I need to make a flier…" After a moment he raised a hand, a sheet of paper appearing in a flutter of lights.

Shera stared in awe.

"This should do," he noted to himself as he used one of the tacks lying on a sheet below the board to attach the flier.

"How did you do that?!" she questioned in disbelief.

Raising an eyebrow, he answered the best he could. "It is a simple skill, Create Lesser Item."

"Ooh…" she cooed before turning to the flier, reading it curiously. "Adventuring party of novice Cleric, adept Brawler, adept Summoner, and novice Rogue looking for new member. Wait… who's who?"

"Aqua the Cleric, Nanana the Brawler, Rem the Summoner and you're the Rogue."

Shera nodded in understanding before turning to him in confusion. "What about you?"

"I'm not truly part of this mission, remember?"

"Oh, right."

"Now we wait," he explained as he began returning to the inn for the night, Shera obliviously hanging onto him the entire time.

* * *

The following morning, Diablo and the others sat at one of the booths in the Guild's main hall, which had an attached bar, waiting for anyone wanting to join.

"Nobody seems interested…" Diablo lamented quietly.

"To be fair, you didn't make it sound very inviting," Nanana retorted bluntly, also quiet.

Diablo hissed silently. "I wasn't really part of PR in AOG…"

"Probably for the best," she chided.

Rem's ears suddenly popped up, catching the others' attention. She pointed to the flier. "Someone's looking."

Everyone turned and saw a petite figure with an overly large staff looking at the board, specifically at their flier. After a moment, the girl looked around the area in thought.

Shera waved happily, catching the girl's attention, who made her way over.

As she approached, Diablo managed to get a better look at her. A petite frame, almost malnourished. Her large staff had a faint green orb clutched in the center, the staff itself made of very rough wood. She wore an extremely tall, pointed brown hat with red accents on her head, one that was, as with her weapon, comically large for her size, so much so it slumped to one side. Her main attire consisted of a simple red and yellow dress, one that could almost be considered a shirt on a taller frame, along with a brown mantle and light brown boots, a black stocking rising up her left leg, and white bandages on the opposite. Her most striking feature was her vibrantly red eyes, though one was hidden beneath a red eyepatch.

'_… It's like she's too small for her outfit…_' Diablo kept this comment to himself.

"She's cute," Nanana commented, almost lecherously.

"You are the ones in search of my power?" the girl questioned with a haughty smirk.

Diablo found the expression oddly adorable on her. "I suppose," he responded plainly, trying to maintain an aura of superiority.

The girl put a hand over her uncovered eye with a small chuckle that turned into a wildly dramatic cackle. "It is fated that we meet this day! I will offer you my power in return –!"

Nanana put up a hand and interrupted her. "We've already got a Chuunibyo, thanks."

Megumin almost winced at the interruption, her dramatic composure completely dropped. "E – Eh?"

"Nanana," Diablo retorted, causing her to hum curiously. "Quiet."

The busty purplette nearly face-faulted at his sudden order.

Turning his attention back to the petite girl, he decided to get her name.

"Kukuku…" the girl resumed snickering, likely in a way she intended to be diabolical. It was not. "I am the great Crimson Tribe Mage, Megumin!"

Diablo stared at her plainly for a moment. "Crimson Tribe?"

Megumin almost fell to the ground in disbelief. "How do you not know of my people!?"

Diablo winced subtly. '_Crap, have I broken my act? Wait, no, I can recover._' "I – I don't concern myself with the ins and outs of mortal society."

The red-eyed girl stared at him for a moment. "Mortal society? Are you not one? You look like a Draph to me."

"No, I am a Demon Lord."

Shera tilted her head in confusion. "But… didn't you tell me yo –?"

"D – Demon Lord!?" Megumin exclaimed in awe. "For real?!"

Diablo nodded firmly. "Yes. I am one." '_I suppose Demon Lords are held in high regard in this world? Meaning I will as well._'

"What's a Demon Lord doing in a tiny town like this?"

"Are you questioning my motives? What if I merely fancy some entertainment?"

Megumin stared blankly and deadpanned, "If I had the money I'd move to Orario for that."

Diablo was rather confused by the accusation, but did not think it would do him any favors to ask.

Thankfully, Nanana noticed his confusion and did it for him. "What's one thing got to do with the other?"

"It's full of deities, gods and goddesses. Granted, none of them are Demon Lords, but they're all there for the same reason. Amuse themselves with the plights of mortals."

"Really?"

"Yes," Rem interjected. "I'm sure there's maybe a handful that aren't brutal or cruel about it, but that's why they're all there. Entry is free, but getting back out is costly."

"We are getting off track," Diablo interrupted before the conversation could continue. "What I am is irrelevant, I am here now and I am offering work. What else matters?"

Megumin frowned slightly but did not argue in the contrary.

"So, what abilities do you have?"

"Explosion," she answered very curtly.

Diablo remained silent for a moment, waiting. "… And?"

"That's it."

"Just one spell?"

"Not just _a_ spell, the most powerful, most beautiful, most amazing spell in all the universe! Explosion magic, the one TRUE magic!"

Diablo stared silently for a moment before sighing. "Useless."

Megumin winced before her resolute posture broke immediately into desperation. "… Please! Let me join your Party! I'll do anything!" As if to punctuate her plea, her stomach growled loudly.

Diablo twitched an eyebrow, as he felt sympathy for the helpless girl. "… Fine."

Megumin smirked and reared back her posture with a maniacal laughter.

"No," Diablo interrupted coldly.

"… Okay…" she agreed, disappointed.

* * *

Shortly, the documents showing who was in their Party were amended to include the Explosion mage's name.

"There, now you're part of the group," Nanana remarked as she handed the paper to the Guild representative.

"Yes!" Megumin cheered.

"Our first goal is a mission to finish up," Diablo explained.

"Right!" she answered with excitement.

Diablo stared at the girl, mildly concerned. "You're not even going to ask?"

"No. Why?"

"… No reason. Let's head out."

* * *

Just past noon, the group reached the plains outside of Faltra and were shortly from another of the giant toads.

Megumin nodded in understanding as she looked at it. "Ah, frogs legs."

Motioning to the outwardly docile beast, Diablo urged, "Alright, show us what you can do."

Nanana frowned curiously as Megumin prepared to fight. '_Why does that thing seem so familiar…? Wait, could it be…?_'

Megumin presented an almost manic grin as she raised her staff high. "Darkness blacker than black and darker than dark, I beseech thee, combine with my deep crimson. The time of awakening cometh. Justice, fallen upon the infallible boundary, appear now as an intangible distortions! I desire for my torrent of power a destructive force: a destructive force without equal! Return all creation to cinders, and come from the abyss! Eeexplosiooon!"

'_Waaay to long and unneeded…_' Diablo mumbled in annoyance within his mind.

A large, swirling magic circle of black and bright orange appeared in front of her before shooting a large ball of swirling energy out at the monster.

Almost reflexively Diablo grabbed Shera and Rem, pulling them tight to his sides.

"TACTICAL NUKE! GET DOWN!" Nanana bellowed at the top of her lungs.

The ball of energy hit the toad, knocking it over slightly, before it burst. Creating a massive conflagration, a towering explosion that lit the sky in red and shook the ground, uprooting several trees within the vicinity and sending shock waves through the area.

Aqua shrieked as the pressure wave sent her flying.

Shera screamed in terror as Diablo clung the ground, holding on to the duo.

'_Excessive!_' Diablo exclaimed in disbelief as the flames finally died down, the explosion becoming a large cloud of smoke and dust. As he waited for the cloud to disperse, he saw the rippling, shimmering, molten rock left over in the crater. '_There's not even a body left!_'

"Perfect…" Megumin muttered with a shiver of ecstasy through her body before collapsing motionless to the ground.

'_EEEHHH!?_'

"I forgot to mention…" Megumin mumbled slowly with a complete lack of energy, "my problem with Explosion is that it drains all my mana…"

'_Useless!_' Sighing as he stood up, he looked around. "Well, that's three down." Turning to his side, he saw a terrified Shera trembling. After taking a moment to admire the adorable display, he decided it best to comfort her, patting her on the head gently. "I – It's okay, it's over now."

As if the universe were mocking him, yet another toad emerged from the ground, woken by the proverbial bomb.

Nanana twitched an eyebrow and decided to take action, charging at the new target.

'_Guess she's got that handled,_' he noted to himself.

"Die stupid frog!" Nanana demanded as she ducked under its tongue lash, ran up its back, and began repeatedly slamming her fists into its head, rumbling its body with each impact. Raising both arms up high, clutching her hands together, she slammed down with the full force of both arms, caving the creature's skull, inadvertently causing some of its organs to spill out.

Diablo sighed in relief before he heard a familiar scream for help and turned to see Aqua being swallowed by another toad. He then looked at the others for a moment. "… Is anyone going to do something about that?"

In response, Shera readied another arrow and began speaking quietly before the arrow was imbued with fluctuating white light. "Piercing Arrow!" she shouted before releasing it, the arrow flying at intense speed, flying in through one side of the toad's skull, flying out through the other, and soaring off into the nearby forest.

The toad remained still where it stood for a moment before collapsing to the ground, dead.

Rem stared in disbelief. "… Did that just happen?"

"She did hit one in the eye last time," Diablo argued.

"Right…" Rem grumbled, as if she did not want to be reminded.

Aqua crawled out of the dead creature, whimpering and covered in spit.

Diablo sighed as he folded his arms. "Well I suppose that is all of them. Come, let us return home."

"Right!" Shera cheered with a fist pump, making her globes jiggle pleasingly.

* * *

Shera stared in awe at the pile of gold coins on the table in their inn room. "Wow! So much money!"

Rem huffed slightly. "Twenty-five thousand Vals isn't that much. Split six ways it won't even last a few days."

"Five," Diablo interjected.

Rem looked at him curiously, her ears twitching.

"You're splitting it five ways, not six. I do higher jobs after all."

Rem frowned in confusion. "You don't need money?"

"I'm a Demon Lord. I take what I need," he answered with a smirk.

Nanana stared intensely at him, almost to the point Diablo could hear her jeering.

"Why are you calling yourself that when you're _obviously_ a high-ranking deity?" Aqua asked, annoyed and confused.

He just looked at her confused.

"You're a god. I can tell."

Megumin stood up, indignant. "Wait, this is a Familia? Then why didn't I get a Falna?!"

Diablo was again lost.

"You should've asked," Aqua shot back.

"Is it true that you're actually a god?!" Shera asked with fascination.

He just stared silently.

"He obviously is considering he took control of an army of angels!" Aqua argued vehemently.

"You mean those Archangel Flames?" Nanana questioned, Diablo still looking like a deer in the headlights.

"And a Principality Observation and _definitely _a fricking Dominion Authority! And only a god could do that!"

Nanana sighed in annoyance before she heard a beep that seemed to come from inside her own head.

'_Is the Private Chat spell working?_'

Nanana blinked curiously and saw Diablo looking at her expectantly. '_Yeah, it is. What's up?_'

'_Do you have any idea what a Familia is or why me being some kind of God is so important?_'

'_Nope. Want me to ask since you need to look omnipotent?_'

Diablo stiffened slightly before casting his gaze down, his cheeks turning red. '_… Yes… please…_'

Nanana just smirked smugly before turning her attention to the cat-eared girl. "What's a Familia?"

"A group of people who serve under one of the gods that's here on Ente Isla. They give some of the money they earn and their loyalty to the god, and in return the god grants them a Falna, a brand that grants them enhanced power. In theory, anyway."

Nanana raised an eyebrow curiously. "In theory?"

"Yes. The Falna is beneficial for the extremely weak. But it constrains and, in some cases, weakens those who are already strong. In addition, the only way any improvements gained from training or combat can be added to your body and mind are when your deity updates your Falna. If he simply chooses not to then you will never get stronger, no matter how much you train. Many gods use it as a form of ransom to their Familia members, whom the gods have chosen to call Children."

Diablo frowned at the explanation, Nanana waving a hand dismissively.

"Plus, there's a limit to how strong a Child can get before reaching the limits of their Falna. At which point they have two choices. Accept their lot in life and do what they can with what they have. Or they can try and do something the gods consider amazing to raise their Level and start getting stronger again."

"… And why do people do this?" Nanana questioned, her suspicions growing stronger.

Rem just shrugged. "Because the vast majority of people aren't powerful enough to go Adventuring on their own, and the Falna gives them a boost."

"Ah… no thanks," Nanana shot back bluntly.

Diablo put a hand on his chin in thought. '_I wonder if I can make a variant that doesn't have those drawbacks. Or maybe if done by a Demon Lord it wouldn't be default? Hm…_' "I'll give you one," he introduced firmly.

Everyone in the room seem to get excited for one reason or another at the declaration.

"Really?!" Shera asked with excitement.

"Yes," he answered with a firm nod.

"… How do we get it on?" Rem questioned.

Diablo felt the urge to slap a hand on his face. '_Consider your wording please…_'

Aqua offered, "I think it requires some of the deity's blood along with the user to be naked.

"O – Oh…" Shera stuttered slightly in concern. "Okay…" she noted in acceptance.

Diablo's face nearly burnt red. '_No, not okay! Not okay at all!_'

"… I think I'll pass," Nanana responded after a short moment to think.

Diablo nodded in acceptance, trying to push the image of Shera's bare twins out of his mind. "R – Right. Megumin? Aqua?"

Megumin gave a quick affirmation, Aqua denying the offer with a blunt, "I'm a goddess."

"So?" Nanana taunted.

She looked at the girl, annoyed.

"No one believes that you are."

Aqua twitched an eyebrow further before groaning. "… Fine…"

Diablo nodded before addressing the whole group. "So, when shall we start?"

"Immediately would be good!" Megumin interjected excitedly.

"Let us get some sleep first," he argued. '_That and I need to figure out how to do all this to begin with…_'

* * *

The next morning, Diablo, after finishing his breakfast, left the inn.

"Where are you going?" Aqua wondered.

"To find a library."

"What for?" Rem questioned, walking up to the others near the door.

"Need I tell you what a library is for?"

The girl folded her ears against her head with an embarrassed flush.

"Planning on going alone?" Nanana interjected.

"I am," he replied, resulting in Shera pouting in disappointment. "It is fine, Shera. Nothing is going to happen."

"Right…"

* * *

As he made his way around the town, Diablo let his thoughts run. '_Hm… with the reputation I have gained as Diablo, it could be hard to get what I need. Now how should I…? Hm… a disguise, maybe? Yes that will work. A name… I need a name… Ah, perfect!_' Looking around curiously for a moment, he ducked into an alleyway.

A few moments later, a man with log grey hair in a ponytail, a single tuft hanging over his face, clad in elaborate red and silver armor with a long shield, a sword sheathed within, emerged from the alleyway. Smirking slightly, he thought to himself, '_Heathcliff is perfect. No one here will know him, and I don't have to think too hard for a disguise._' "Now to ask around for one."

* * *

Several hours passed as "Heathcliff" wandered around Faltra.

He stood in front of a large building after his search. '_To think the word library isn't common parlance in this world… Archive, such a circuitous naming convention. Well at least I found what I was looking for._'

Making his way inside, he saw a young woman standing at a desk near the entrance.

"How may I help you?" she asked with a pleasant smile.

"I am looking for encyclopedias on gods and Familias," Heathcliff answered firmly, trying to maintain a plain smile. "To get more specific, on Falna."

The woman nodded in returned and motioned elsewhere in the archive. "Right this way."

* * *

"This series of books has the broadest surface level knowledge on Falna and their history. I hope it helps you."

"I believe it shall, thank you," he replied as he pulled out one of the wooden chairs, which did not in any way look sturdy, and looked at the pile around him. '_This is… a lot of books. Well, time to start scouring them for what I need. Let's dig in!_'

* * *

Diablo, still looking like Heathcliff, did his best to avoid an annoyed groan as he put yet another book in a pile to his right.

'_This is far more reading than I like doing… It's like I'm back in university again. Right, if I'm understanding this right, the Falna are basically contracts written onto the person's body in the language of the gods. It contains descriptors of the god's abilities, habits, and realm to help determine what kind of power that person will be oriented towards. And how to form one… It looks like they write the forms of stats on the person's back as well, and then infuse an incantation with their blood to mark the seal and make it. Hm… I wonder if there are examples of that incantations…_'

"Having trouble?" a voice caught the "old" man's attention.

Turning to his side, he saw the source, a young woman with long, bright red hair and sharp amber eyes wearing white armor with gold accents, a short, pleated, brown miniskirt, and a long blue cape, a sword with intricate engravings on the hilt sheathed at her side. '_… Well she's cute._' Taking a moment to catch up to her question, he nodded. "Yes, some. And you are…?"

"Emilia Justina, one Re-Estize's Heroes."

Heathcliff frowned slightly at the answer.

Emilia laughed in slight embarrassment before waving a hand. "Don't let the name confuse you. It's just what the king calls Adventurers that work directly for the throne."

"Oh? You are an Adventurer?"

The redhead nodded in reply. "Yes. Or, I was. Why?"

"No major reason, only curious."

"Okay…" she replied, somewhat confused. "What's your name, by the way?"

"Heathcliff. Heathcliff Valonus."

"Heathcliff Valonus? Odd name."

Heathcliff chuckled lightly. "Humorous, but it does little to help my search."

"Sorry…" Emilia remarked with a light chuckle. "So, what are you doing?"

"I am doing what I can to understand the Falna better." '_Right… doing okay so far._'

Emilia raised an eyebrow in thought. "Oh? What for?"

He had not thought about that part. "I… met a god that is trying to form his own Familia. However, he doesn't know how to form a Falna."

That caught the redhead off guard. "Don't all gods know how to do that?"

With a shrug, Heathcliff chuckled lightly. "I suppose not." '_If she's an Adventurer, she must have a Falna as well, right? Maybe she'd let me see it._' "May I see yours?"

The redhead stared silently at him for a moment. "… Eh?"

"What?"

"Y – You want to see it…?"

"Your Falna."

"… No," she answered, almost coldly.

Heathcliff's external appearance was as placid as always, though Diablo was worried. '_Crap! I think I pissed her off! Why? What'd I do?!_'

"Do you know that little about it? The Falna is printed directly on the skin of the bearer. On their back."

"… Ah." '_Meaning… she'd have to get undressed!? Great, now I sound like a pervert!_' "My apologies, I was unaware."

"Not only that, the Falna contains very private information, a contract between the god and mortal written in the deity's blood, their ichor. It's unusual for fellow Familia members to see each other's Falna. It's almost considered illegal for those outside the Familia to see it."

"Ah. I was not aware it was such a sacred contract."

"It's alright. I guess people who aren't Adventurers wouldn't know." She then began looking over the pile of books in thought. "Ah, here." Without explanation she reached towards one of the books he had yet to read, flipped open the pages and placed it sideways in front of him.

Before him sat two pages with a large rune inscribed on it filled with hundreds of various symbols. "This is?"

"A basic Falna. It uses the language of the gods, meaning most people can't really tell what it says, aside from elves and Spirits, that is."

"Oh?" '_Language of the gods? I can tell it's a form of hieroglyphics, though it doesn't resemble any language I know. Though I suppose that isn't a surprise._'

"It talks about what the god's realm is. Oh, in case you don't know, a realm is the properties they have. Such as a war god having a realm in combat and defense, or a smithing god having the realm of crafting and weaponry. It seems simple at first but it gets complicated depending on what the god presides over."

"Intriguing." '_I appreciate the explanations, though I do wonder why she's providing to me. Well, as they say, don't look a gift horse in the mouth._'

"Then there's this part, the Stats. It's pretty simple, it shows a series of somewhat metaphorical qualities, and how much skill, or I suppose ability, the Adventurer has in each area."

"Ah. I appreciate the explanation."

Emilia smiled and laughed uncomfortably. "I have to admit, it feels a little awkward explaining this stuff to someone so much older than me. Especially when you've got such elaborate armor. Are you not from a Familia of any kind?"

"Far to the west. We haven't had much interaction with deities that walk amongst mortals, and I eventually got curious enough from listening to traveling merchants from the east and decided to learn about them. Then I heard about these Falna and thought I'd learn more. During my travels I met a god who was equally uncertain how to make them for his Familia."

"And why are you the one looking into it?"

With a hearty laugh, Heathcliff answered, "To spare the poor boy his pride."

Emilia smiled and nodded in return. "That was rather kind of you. Well, I've enjoyed this little aside, but I have duties to attend to. I hope we cross paths again."

"As do I." Watching her as she left, Heathcliff sighed in thought. '_I wonder why a Hero was here… Oh well. At the very least I have the basic idea of how a Falna works. Hm… I wonder. If the way it works is with the language of the gods, what if I make mine with Japanese? Wait, there are probable Japanese gods here too… But maybe they all use that same language… Wait, how different would a Falna be if a Demon Lord was the caster? I believe Aqua is the best test subject for this._'

* * *

Diablo swiftly made his way back to the inn, being sure to duck into an alley to drop his Heathcliff disguise. He found keeping up the persona of the man difficult.

Returning to the room, without sparing a moment, he announced, "Aqua, strip down."

The goddess instantly lurched to a corner of the room with a shriek.

Diablo stared at her, confused.

"Wh – What are you trying to do?!"

"Put a Falna on you."

"… O – Oh… right…"

'_You could have worded that much better,_' Nanana teased with their private communication.

'_Quiet…_' Diablo shot back.

* * *

Aqua, lying on the large bed with her back exposed, blushing, an expression Diablo found rather pleasant as opposed to her usual boastful look, gulped as Diablo got on top of her, straddling her.

'_This feels extremely dirty!_' Diablo shouted in his mind, fully aware of the compromising position required for the procedure.

'_Just focus on the runes or whatever it is you need to do, weirdo,_' Nanana grumbled. '_Besides, it's just Aqua._'

'_That's easy for you to say…_' Sighing, Diablo shook his head. '_Okay, just remember how it's organized. Should be easy. Okay… let's hope I don't turn into a fountain when I prick my finger this time._' Holding a needle in his hand, he lightly pricked the end of his finger, causing blood to slowly pour from his finger, annoying him greatly. '_Seriously? Am I some kind of Blood G – oh, right. I know Blood Magic, duh._'

Diablo focused his attention fully onto Aqua's back, treating it as a canvas as he drew and wrote various shapes and runes with his blood, doing his best to create a complex map for magic to attach to.

Aqua snickered and laughed as he wrote. "Th – That tickles!"

"Keep still or I might accidently put a bomb rune on you."

The blue-haired girl instantly went as stiff as a board, Diablo was not even certain she was breathing.

"Alright… there… Almost… done." Sighing, he put his hand in the center of the complex web of symbols and shapes before pumping mana into it, the same he had done with the mirror at the Guild hall. The emblems glowed brightly before squirming and wiggling, condensing and raveling up into a compact shape, showing a basic symbol of a goblet with flames pouring out, a Roman numerical one below it, and a series of letters and numbers below that.

Aqua blinked in surprise as the process occurred. "I feel kind of… warm."

Looking over the statistics displayed on her back, Diablo's face went completely flat. "… You've got to be kidding me."

"Huh? What is it?" Aqua asked, sitting up, excited. "I'm great, aren't I? My Stats are all super high, right?" she questioned, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

Diablo sighed heavily. "Your Stats… every single Stat you have except Luck is awful."

Aqua remained silent, staring at him for several moments, seemingly waiting for something. Finally realizing it, she shouted out, "WWHHAATT!?"

Nanana, meanwhile, was rolling around on the floor with raucous fits of laughter.

Grumbling, Diablo listed off each of her Stats and their related values.

Strength I-7, Endurance I-4, Dexterity I-1, Agility I-14, Magic I-32, Luck H-127.

Aqua's entire body went white as paper before she seemed to crumple to the floor.

"Ooh, me next!" Shera shouted with glee, throwing her mantle and top off expediently, leaving only the thin green bra to hide her rolling hills as she ran up to Diablo.

'_BOOBS!_' he exclaimed in his head, earning him a strike from Nanana. '_PAIN!_'

'_Get to work,_' she hissed.

'_Right,_' he replied stoically, despite the blood pouring from his nose, though he managed to use it to create the Falna on the elven girl's back. Condensing the seal into a simple shape, he raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Hoh? Impressive."

"Really, really?" the elf asked with excitement.

Strength G-238, Endurance H-142, Dexterity I-97, Agility G-256, Magic H-134, Luck I-72.

Shera smiled gleefully as she sat up, still evidently unaware of her barely hidden peaks.

Diablo gulped as he ushered her off the bed, mostly to keep himself from bleeding to death. "R – Rem…" he stammered somewhat.

Frowning, the Pantherian removed her jacket, leaving only her top that conveniently exposed her back. "H – Hopefully this will suffice."

"Not like you've got much to show," Aqua spat, seemingly trying to desperately reclaim any form of superiority.

Rem scowled at the woman with twitching ears, her tail stiffening angrily.

"Lie down please," Diablo urged, the girl sighing and complying, though keeping an irritated scowl aimed at Aqua the whole time.

Rem sighed as Diablo began inscribing.

Pressing a finger to her thin back, Diablo was surprised when the small girl let out a moan at his touch, though she almost instantly slapped a hand over her mouth to ensure it did not happen again. '_… Cute…_'

'_Focus,_' Nanana warned.

Finishing up faster than he had with either Shera or Aqua, he condensed the seal. "Done. Now, let's see what you've got."

Rem stood up curiously, putting her coat back on as she listened to her Stats.

Strength F-312, Endurance G-294, Dexterity G289, Agility G-276, Magic G-234.

The last one caught his attention rather negatively. "Luck… I-14…"

Rem frowned somberly in response. "I suppose… that makes sense…"

Shera's ears wiggled curiously as the Pantherian's solemn comment.

"Okay, I suppose that's everyone."

Annoyed, Megumin pulled on his cape. "Ahem, did you forget about me?"

"Yes," he replied bluntly.

"At least _try_ and make something up!" the girl hissed. Growling, she pulled the back of her robe down, doing her best to keep her front covered, and laid down.

Diablo just sighed and prepared to start inscribing. After a few moments, he finished and rattled off her Stats. "Now, let's see… Strength I-14, Endurance I-4, Dexterity H-124, Agility I-12, Luck H-101, and Magic G-228."

Rem grumbled in annoyance, before Megumin spoke up. "About that…"

"Yes?"

"I've heard that when Adventurers first get their Falna, all of their Stats start at I-0 and go up from there."

* * *

**And finito! Thus ends the third chapter. Hopefully everyone enjoyed it, be sure to review it if you did. If you were confused, uncertain, or just have questions on anything, let me know with a review and I will address your queries in the next reviewer responses. If you do not know where certain characters are from, ask and I will be more than happy to let you know their origins, as listing every new character in each chapter would get too time consuming, so I will just do the ones not everyone knows. As for those who disliked the chapter, review if you must, though I do ask you have something to say and to please have a proper grasp of English, it is the only language I read.**

**Anyway! Enough faffing about, see you next time!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter IV**

**Hello and greetings everyone! I return with another chapter of Demon Lord's Adventurers. I certainly hope everyone enjoyed the previous chapter; reviews indicate at least a few of you did, which is always good to see. I hope you all enjoy this one too. That said, I would like to thank Bakuto for all his continued help with the near endless procession of weird that comes from my skull, and his patience in dealing with it. So, enough babbling, on to the reviewer responses!**

**correnhimself316: Indeed, Diablo doesn't really _do_ normal. And don't worry, Nazarick will come around in due time.**

**N2: His interactions with Darkness will be interesting at the very least, I promise.**

**Tsolda: You're on the right track, but it doesn't work exactly the same as any existing series. In all of my stories, I take elements from numerous shows, movies, games, and novels and sort of cut and splice in what I consider most useful or interesting. His exact Level? I'm not sure. He's easily one of the most powerful beings in this world, so Level Seven at the least, maybe higher. He's closer to a deity than an Adventurer.**

**Fortitude501: Aqua is always toad food.**

**superpeirce: Because she is? From what I recall of the actual show she was pretty damn strong, even as a ghost, so just multiply that by having a physical body, she was likely a monster of strength while alive.**

**Skull Flame: Blessing and busted. Nice alliteration.**

**Eher: Head Maid from MaoYuu.**

**KRKing: There's a trail of destruction waiting, that's for sure.**

**freeforall546: Not well.**

**Zaraki6: So many busty choices...**

**Shadowjab17: Give it time. Despite my normal pattern, something like this requires a bit more stewing rather than just front-loading everything.**

**Quite a hefty helping there. Always fun to see. I hope for more in future, and now for what you are all really here for!**

* * *

Megumin questioned Diablo, "I've heard that when Adventurers first get their Falna, all of their Stats start at I-0 and go up from there."

Diablo stared silently at her as he tried to think of an argument.

As if on cue, Shera offered, "Maybe it's different because he's a Demon Lord, not a god?"

"He _is_ a god," Aqua shot back bluntly.

Rem, irritated, interjected before the back and forth could escalate. "The end result is the same, his Falna works differently to most."

"So, what now?" Nanana questioned, seemingly ignoring Shera's pout at being ignored.

"We need a new job so we can get more money," Diablo answered firmly.

Shera excitedly pumped a fist into the air, as if unaware of her still topless state as her twins bounced around.

Diablo did his best to stem the fountain from his nose.

* * *

After getting everyone dressed once more, they made their way from the inn to the Guild, asking Sylvie for a new job.

Sylvie, thinking over the options, laid a document on the table. "A new quest, huh? Well we've got this. It's from the Mage's Association, but it seems pretty fishy."

"Oh…?" Diablo returned with a perked eyebrow as the others looked over the paper.

"It requests killing a Basilisk in the Man-Eating Forest and pays a ridiculous amount of money."

Diablo narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

Before he could come to a decision, however, Nanana spoke up. "Sounds suspicious. And fun!"

"And look at all those zeros…" Aqua drooled.

Seeing the others had more or less decided to take it, Diablo just sighed and accepted it. "Right… I suppose we can do it. So let's go."

"Right!" Shera chirped with excitement.

* * *

Heading west of the city, they eventually reached the forest in question. A densely packed labyrinth of trees and undergrowth that was practically opaque from the outside. The canopies reaching so high and having such full coverage that very little light made it very far down, leaving the interior closer to a cave than a forest.

"Creepy…" Shera mumbled as she walked with the others.

"Yeah…" Megumin whimpered as she clutched her staff closely.

Shrugging, Nanana retorted, "It _is_ called the Man-Eating Forest."

"But they're women," Diablo dryly shot back.

Curling a fist, Nanana grumbled, "Don't make me hit you again."

"I am prepared this time." He then raised a hand, causing a small blue barrier to momentarily flash in front of him. After that exchange, he glanced to the side and noticed Shera crouching next a river with an unhappy look.

"The water here is so murky… I can't see anything…" she pouted.

"We're looking for a Basilisk, right?" Nanana asked.

Rem nodded and, in a voice that was slightly louder than necessary, explained, "Yes. Basilisks are giant carnivorous snakes that live in bodies of stagnant water and strike with surprise."

Shera, making the connection, lurched back from the pond with a frightful squeal.

Diablo could not help but find the reaction rather adorable, though he then noticed Aqua shivering as she walked and was looking around sheepishly, her head on a swivel. Feeling bad for the goddess, he tried to console her. "Aqua."

"Y – Yes!?"

It had the opposite effect. Sighing, he noted, "There is nothing that will happen here I will not be able to handle. So there is no need for fear."

Aqua winced and then faced forward, trying to steel her expression. "I – I'm not scared…"

Shera, getting a sudden devious thought, snuck up behind her, poked Aqua in the back and said quietly, "Boo."

"KKYYAA!" Aqua shrieked, leaping high enough to wrap herself around a branch. "Y – You brat!"

Shera laughed lightly.

Diablo just sighed in exhaustion. However, his stone-faced observation was stopped when he heard another shriek from the blue-haired moron.

"C – Coming!"

Looking ahead, Diablo saw a massive wolf with black fur and bright yellow eyes charging at his group.

"That thing's huge!" Rem exclaimed as she flicked her wrists, causing clawed gauntlets to wrap over her slender hands.

The wolf snarled and reared its head back.

Diablo, realizing what it was about to do, acted swiftly by drawing a small dagger from his coat and threw it.

The wolf stopped before it could even open its mouth to evade the spike.

"You missed!" Nanana criticized.

"I wasn't truly aiming to hit it, just distract it," he answered as he pulled his wand out.

"Why…?"

"It was about to howl, and if it had been allowed to, it would have called forth its entire pack. They would not be any trouble for me, but I would find it irritating to take out an entire pack of Direwolves and protect you lot at the same time."

Snarling, the beast charged at Diablo.

"No mere beast can defeat a Demon Lord!" Diablo shouted as he swung his wand lazily. "Gust!"

A blast of wind shot forth and impacted the Direwolf, sending it flying back before it ran forward with almost blinding speed.

"You just don't learn!" Diablo snarled as he stood momentarily motionless.

"Diablo!" Shera called out.

Almost in an instant, Diablo pulled another spike out and whisked it down, jamming straight into the furred monstrosity's right eye.

As blood gushed from its wound, he raised his leg to side and slammed it against the monster's ribs, sending it flying past several trees and down a steep drop off.

Shera leaned over the side and watched as the Direwolf fell dozens of meters before vanishing in the inky blackness below. "Ah, he fell in a river."

"How do you know? I can't see anything…?" Nanana questioned.

"I heard a splash."

"Ah…"

Diablo scoffed as he folded his arms. "Pathetic, these monsters are so weak. I thought they were supposed to be strong…"

Sighing as she retracted her gauntlets, Rem retorted, "For most people they are."

He just stared at her for a moment in thought before he noticed Shera looking around curiously. "Shera."

Looking at him, her ears drooping in mild confusion, the elf questioned, "Hey, it's just us doing this quest, right?"

"Yes, it is."

Scratching her head in thought, she added, "Then… do people use this forest more than I thought?"

"Obviously not," Rem retorted harshly. "Anyone with sense stays away."

"Why are you asking?" Nanana questioned, deciding to prevent further digression.

"There are people in the trees," the elf obliviously answered bluntly.

Diablo almost wanted to slap his own face in disbelief but decided to focus on dealing with the current situation. "Where?"

Shera responded by pointing to various spots along the tree line ahead of them. "There, there, there, and there."

Rem, hissing as she readied her gauntlets once more, chided, "You should've said something earlier!"

"Wh – Why?" Shera asked in fearful confusion. "Is something wrong?"

Readying his wand and focusing on the spots Shera pointed to, Diablo explained, "We've been put into a trap."

"Eehh!?" she exclaimed in shock.

"Flame Shot Barrage!" Diablo called out as a series of bright red magic circles appeared in the air behind him and sent out powerful blasts of flame.

The explosions rocked the forest and lit up the area as the group of stalkers hiding in the trees fell to the ground.

Seeing them, Shera gasped in disbelief. "Elves!?" she awed as the numerous men with blonde hair, pointed ears, and green uniforms stood up from their uncomfortable landing spots.

Diablo stared mildly annoyed at the group. '_Even the male elves look like women…_' "Do you know them?"

As one particular man, a bow in his hand and his hair tied back in a ponytail stepped forward, Shera stumbled back, befuddled. "Celsior?! What's going on?!"

"Well that answers that."

The man, Celsior, raised his bow at Diablo with an arrow armed. "We've found you, Slave Trader!"

Standing silently for a moment, Diablo looked around, lost. "Who?"

"Release Princess Shera at once!"

Diablo finally realized the effeminate man was referring to him. "And by that I assume you mean my Familia member?"

Celsior merely tightened the grip on his arrow. "Don't lie to me, Demon!" he cursed before releasing the shot.

Diablo stood motionless as the bolt soared through the air before impacting him, stopping almost immediately in front of him and buckling on itself before dropping to the ground in pieces. After a short pause, he looked at Celsior. "Is that it?"

Celsior stiffened in shock before stumbling back somewhat. "Wh – What the…?"

"Is that _all _you have?"

Celsior snarled and panicked, pulling an ornate, semi translucent arrow from his quiver.

Shera paled as she recognized it. "Diablo! That's a Tempest Arrow!"

Diablo raised an eyebrow with a smirk. "Oh? A Tempest Arrow? That might actually tear a bit of my cloak off." '_This will probably hurt a little, but I need to ignore the pain to put on a show. These guys need to get the hell out of here…_'

Celsior readied the arrow and drew the string, almost instantly causing the arrow to begin glowing as wind swirled around it, fluttering loose objects around him as the wind picked up more, the longer he held it.

'_A charge shot huh? Can't let him fully charge it, it might actually do some damage._'

Celsior saw Diablo begin raising one of his arms and let loose the shot. "Die, Slave Trader!"

Wind swirled in the area as gusts surrounded the arrow, a powerful cone of pure wind cycling around it as it shot towards the horned man.

Diablo remained static as the burst of wind and magic collided with him, an explosion of pressure and wind magic flying in all directions.

Celsior cautiously waited for the dust to settle before hearing a faint rattle, his skin going whiter than a cloud when he saw his arrow, an enchanted, magical weapon, lying helplessly on the ground and Diablo, his only visible side effects being small tears in his clothes and a small bruise on his chest, standing firmly.

"You done now?" he retorted coldly to the quivering elf.

Celsior and the other elves took a step back, and then another, as the realization of what they were up against set in.

Raising his staff, Diablo threatened, "Now, I believe it's my turn. Freezia!"

A massive lattice of interlocking magic pentagrams formed in the sky, all pale blue, enshrouding nearly the entire forest, before releasing a blinding flash of light.

The elves needed to shield their delicate senses from the light, opening them only to find the entire forest was now coated in a thick sheet of ice, as if time itself had frozen.

Celsior and his allies nearly fell to their backsides as they saw the frosted wasteland surrounding them. "Wh – What the…?" Shaking his head, Celsior decided this needed to stop, and prepared another two arrows simultaneously.

Before he could fire, Shera shouted in desperation. "Stop this!" Celsior flinched as Shera stared somberly at her. "I don't care about the royal family! What Nii-San needs isn't me, it's an heir! He just wants me to bear his child!"

Celsior frowned in vexation. "That's a very important role."

That struck a chord with Diablo. "Silence, cur!" he shouted venomously.

Celsior flinched in minor terror at his sudden anger. "Th – This is a matter for the el –"

"I said quiet!" Diablo interrupted, his red eyes almost glowing with anger. "She is part of _my _Familia. I will _not _let some elven fools drag her away to have her raped by her brother. Do I make myself clear?"

Shera's entire body tensed as he spoke.

Celsior, growling as he tried to rebuff Diablo's threats. "Be careful what you say! I won't tolerate insults to His Highness!"

Diablo huffed in disgust. "His 'Highness' more than likely committed regicide to gain his place."

"Silence!" Celsior retorted as he grabbed for a blade at his side, Diablo readying for his own retaliation.

Shera, however, immediately ran and got between the two of them. "Stop! Celsior, I'm not going back! I don't care about the Royal Family, I don't care about any of that! I belong to me and me only!"

"Princess Shera…" Celsior gasped in stunned disbelief.

"You heard her," Nanana huffed at the man.

Celsior, however, was unfazed as he made to approach Shera. "We're bringing you back to Greenwood, Princess, even if we have to do it by force."

Diablo slammed the butt of his wand against the ground, cracking the ice and imbuing the gem on top of it with a bright, ominous glow. "Then you shall be nothing more than corpses. Though, I do wonder what you were thinking, using the name of the Mage's Association to set this trap."

That seemed to get the elf's attention, as he began to sweat nervously, in spite of the frozen surroundings.

"Trying to start a war with all Adventurers and Mages maybe? Or maybe, a certain vermin put you up to it."

As if on cue, the group heard a firm thump nearby, turning to see Galluk lying in a trembling heap next to a frozen tree.

Diablo sent a sideways, venomous glare at the man. "So the vermin decides to come out of his hole."

Galluk released a very high-pitched shriek as he huddled tighter against the tree.

"Still a coward as well I see," he remarked dismissively before turning his attention back to Celsior's group.

Despite the palpable tension in the air, Shera still smiled to the man who had brazenly come to kidnap her. "Celsior, just tell Nii-San I'm staying. I'm happy where I am, and I'm never returning to Greenwood, okay?"

Celsior furrowed his brow in consideration, mulling over the decision.

Diablo added fuel to the situation. "If you refuse to accept that, I can simply turn you all to ash," he threatened, punctuating his threat with a small ball of flame that formed in the palm of his hand, flickered momentarily, and then vanished. "I am perfectly fine with either choice."

Celsior tried to keep his expression calm, but gulped nervously.

Shera stepped forward to Celsior, still smiling warmly. "Celsior, I'm never returning home. I'm staying here, with my friends. Rem, Aqua, Nanana, and Diablo!"

The man's expression softened as he realized the situation was decided.

"You can go home and tell that to Nii-San."

Celsior sighed in defeat before kneeling in front of Shera, the other elven warriors doing the same. "Fine… I will relay this to His Majesty."

Diablo sighed in relief before glancing to the side, seeing the tree without Galluk in front of it. "And you, worm, I know you're still there. If you ever interfere in my affairs again, I will eliminate you without mercy. Cry like a baby if you understand."

He almost immediately heard a cowering whimper.

"Let's go," Diablo urged as the elves left, Galluk fleeing with haste.

Shera nodded with a smile as she skipped up to Diablo's side.

* * *

Shortly later, the group made their way back to the city, with Shera hanging on one of Diablo's arms, Nanana hanging on the other.

Rem glared at the two silently.

Diablo just sighed, trying to keep his mind off the luscious pillows encapsulating his arms. "… So… what now?"

"I wanna go home, I'm hungry…" Shera pouted.

"You're always hungry," Rem snarked.

"Pudding…" Nanana pouted deeply.

"I have yet to see pudding here," Diablo retorted, causing the girl to freeze up instantly.

To drive the point home, Rem asked, "What's pudding?"

Nanana nearly collapsed in defeat.

Diablo just sighed. "Don't panic. I'll try and cook some."

Nanana looked at him desperately. "It'd better be good!"

Shrugging, he answered, "All I can do is try."

* * *

After returning, Sylvie had to regretfully inform Diablo's group that due to the quest's phony origins no reward could be paid out.

"All that effort for nothing!" Aqua complained as she flopped onto the bed.

"What effort? You didn't _do_ anything," Nanana chastised the goddess, pointing at her angrily.

"Hey, it was terrifying for a pure goddess like me to be in a creepy forest like that!"

"Pure!?"

Diablo sighed as he sat near the commotion, legs folded as he was deep in thought.

Nanana noticed him and walked over to him. "Well, any luck?"

"Kind of, I'm still thinking."

At that moment, Shera, her normal outfit replaced with a loose-fitting tanktop and extremely minimal shorts that both did little to hide her voluptuous figure plopped down in front of him.

"I am, uuhh…" Diablo sputtered as he watched her globes jiggle in front of him.

Twitching an eyebrow, Nanana smacked him on the head. "Pudding now, boobs later."

Diablo grumbled slightly before crossing his arms in thought. "… Right, right. I'm trying to remember the ingredients. Let's see… Sugar, milk, eggs, heavy cream… maybe? I hope it works… Now I just need to find all of the ingredients."

"Shopping trip!" Shera cheered as she leapt up with excitement.

"Put some clothes on first!"

* * *

And so the group set out into the city to grab the basic ingredients. To Diablo's surprise, this world had many of the ingredients he needed readily accessible, though he found the prices somewhat prohibitive.

With the sun hanging low in the sky, they returned to the inn and set out the supplies.

"Hm… that should do it," Diablo noted to himself, looking over everything laid out before him.

"So what's all this stuff for?" Shera asked, leaning over his shoulder, far closer than Diablo was comfortable with.

Trying to keep himself focused, he answered, "C – Cooking." '_Crap… my character may have specialized in things like alchemy, but I never actually did any real-world cooking… I mostly let Mako handle that…_'

Her ears wiggling subtly in curiosity, she turned to him. "Oh… that pooping stuff?"

Nanana could not help slapping a hand over her mouth to stifle laughter.

Diablo stared at her dryly. '_You realize she just called pudding shit, right?_'

Nanana nodded with barely held chuckles. '_I know… but she's so cute that it's funny…_'

Shera merely looked between the two of them in confusion before looking down.

"What?" Diablo questioned at her amazed expression and saw, to his own surprise, a fully-fledged pudding was sat in front of him.

"That was fast!" Nanana exclaimed before swiftly swiping the confection, a wooden stick in place of a spoon helping her wolf it down in mere seconds.

Diablo sat in stunned silence as he looked at the remaining packages of materials. '_How did I…? I wasn't even paying attention… Wait… is that the key?_' As he positioned his hands over the materials, his attention was caught by Shera squatting down in front of him, his eyes locked on her barely concealed twins. Pulling his attention back, he looked down to see nearly half a dozen more puddings in front of him.

Nanana looked as though she would faint. "Whoa! You made them even faster!"

Diablo sighed in a mixture of relief and defeat as the dishes were set up. '_… I can't decide if that's good or bad… Hm… I wonder…_' "Let's try potions now," he remarked before pulling several herbs and vials from under his cloak.

Shera tilted her head curiously. "Can't we just buy the potions?"

Nodding, Diablo explained, "Yes, but the potions in stores aren't as strong as they could be. So I think we should make our own for cheap." He proceeded to take a deep, nervous gulp as he stared at the naïve elf. '_How to focus on Shera without being seen…_' "O – Okay, Shera. An Adventurer should be able to do something like this, so pay close attention."

Gasping at the gravity in his voice, she nodded intently. "Right! I'm watching closely!"

'_And so am I!_' he shouted firmly in his head as he kept his focus on her sweater puppets. Moments later, the potions had been mixed with the vials filled.

"Whoa, so many!"

Diablo, relieved but still perplexed, looked over his handiwork. '_… How…? Wait, maybe, if I'm focused in the task, I do it as my real self, who knows very little of this kind of thing. But if I let my mind wander and get distracted, I work on muscle memory… This is awesome!_' In his excitement, he felt a pair of eyes staring daggers at him and turned to see Nanana sending him an almost spiteful glare. "… Yes?"

Turning away with a huff, she spat, "Pervert."

Twitching an eyebrow, he immediately came up with the best punishment. "No pudding for you."

The girl's voice almost turned into a shriek.

"Huh… this pudding stuff is pretty good," Rem noted as she slowly ate one of the treats.

"HEY! That's mine!" Nanana shouted indignantly.

Rem just twitched her ears obstinately. "Diablo said you don't get any. Someone needs to eat it."

Nanana began to fume before she saw Aqua and Shera both eating some of the pudding as well. The girl was near her boiling point.

'_Learned your lesson?_'

'_… Yes…_'

'_Good,_' he returned as he handed her the last pudding.

'_Jerk._'

* * *

The following morning, the group made their way back to the Guild for more jobs, though with their sails slightly deflated.

"We still don't have any money because that was a false contract…" Diablo grumbled to himself.

"Aww… you'd think the Mages would pay us still…" Shera whimpered.

"It was an invalid Contract," Rem argued with a shrug. "The Association had no reason to pay."

Shera pursed her lips in consternation. "But I thought groups like those pay hush money to keep up a good appearance?"

Rem stared at the elf with a look of bewildered disbelief. "… Sometimes I can't tell if you're actually stupid or just pretending."

"Yeah…" Aqua agreed in confusion.

Shera, not liking either comment, puffed her cheeks defiantly. "That's mean…!"

Megumin looked aside as she heard two Adventurers talking.

"Hey, did you hear about that cave?" the first one asked.

"Yeah. I used to hunt bears in that area, but from what I heard some monster moved in and has been killing anyone who gets close."

"It's true, Robert's group went over there the other day and only that little priestess made it back alive."

As they approached the building, Diablo suddenly stopped, causing Aqua to bump into him for not paying attention. Rubbing her nose, she growled, "Bah! What was that for?!"

However, after something caught her eye, she leaned over his shoulder and saw someone standing near the building looking around nervously.

"Who's she?"

Diablo looked at the armored woman curiously. "No clue… stay here," he ordered as he approached her.

Aqua merely folded her arms in annoyance.

Getting closer, Diablo got a better look at the woman, long, golden blonde hair and hefty, white and gold armor that wrapped her curvy figure, the plate armor accentuating it rather than fully covering it he noticed. "Is something wrong, Ms.?" he called out softly.

"Do you know who made this recruitment poster?" the woman asked bluntly as she held up the flier Diablo made for the girls.

"I did," he answered plainly.

"Really?" she asked with interest.

Pointing to Shera and the others, he added, "They're the ones mentioned in it. Though the quest we were doing it for has ended, so…" he trailed off as he spoke, taking note of the woman's trembling legs. Looking at her in concern, he wondered, '_Is she… scared? Why?_'

"C – C – Can I join your p – p – party?!" the woman asked clumsily, stumbling over her words.

'_Is she really that uncomfortable…?_' "Sure…" The woman was becoming more suspicious to him swiftly, but he decided to test the situation.

The woman smiled with excitement.

Putting up a hand to stem her energy, he noted, "But first, I want to see what you can do. So we'll take a simple quest."

"R – Right!"

"Before any of that, however, I need to know your name."

Saluting gallantly, the woman declared proudly, "I am Darkness, a Crusader."

"Crusader?" Megumin asked as she and the others approached the situation. "Isn't that one of those archaic class distinctions? Everyone's just an Adventurer nowadays."

"R – Right."

Diablo was getting more and more concerned with the woman as time went on, though he and the others still went inside to find a quest.

* * *

Looking over the board, Diablo found one that met his intentions. "Hm… this should do. Twelve thousand Vals to deal with a pack of wild Kobolds. Let's go."

"Right!" Shera cheered as the entire group left out.

* * *

Soon the group approached one of the many forests around the city, and Diablo spotted their quarry, a group of wolf-headed monsters.

"Alright, the Quest asks for twelve dead Kobolds. There's three over there. Darkness, see if you can take them down."

"O – Okay!" the blonde answered with slight discomfort before drawing her sword and charging at the beasts.

"She's quite fast," Nanana commented as the blonde moved at high speed.

"Indeed she is," Diablo agreed, watching her.

As soon as she reached the Kobolds, who had their makeshift weapons readied, Darkness planted her foot and swung, taking a wide slash towards the monsters before turning on her heel and releasing a wide swing followed a series of quick slices.

As branches and twigs harmlessly fell around her, the Kobolds merely stared at her in confusion, Diablo's expression remaining stone-faced despite his internal horror, and Darkness' cheeks gaining a distinct red hue.

One of the Kobolds stared at her for several moments before picking up a nearby stone and hurling it at her.

The rock impacted her arm forcefully and knocked her out of her embarrassed trance.

What caught Diablo's attention most, however, was the loud moan of enjoyment she let out after the hit.

The other two Kobolds responded in kind and all three started throwing rocks at her.

Nanana stared in slack-jawed disbelief. "I – I don't believe it… she's a masochist…"

"I – Indeed…" Diablo muttered. '_Maybe that explains why she was acting so strangely when we met…_'

"Um… I think if we don't do anything they're going to kill her," Rem noted as the Kobolds continued throwing rocks at the blonde knight.

"Right. Shera?"

Nodding, Shera pulled her bow from its holster and readied an arrow as she watched the Kobolds encircling Darkness, taunting her. Then, at just the right moment, released the arrow, it having enough force to fly through the heads of all three monsters in a row without stopping.

Rem looked at the elf in standard disbelief. "… How…?"

Diablo folded his arms with a sigh as Darkness got back to her feet. '_Great… how do we deal with her…? Hmm… A masochist is someone who likes pain, how can I use that…? Oh! The Reverse Ring!_' "Darkness, come here."

Getting to her feet, the girl approached, Diablo seeing just how battered she had gotten from that short confrontation.

'_Good grief…_' He then pulled a small ring from his cloak and handed it to her. "Here."

She looked at the ring curiously. "What's this?" Her brain then ran wild. "A – Are you saying immediately that you want to make me yours!?"

"No!" he snapped back before pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "It's called the Reverse Ring. Every time you strike an enemy, it hits you with an electric shock."

Rem, Aqua, and Shera looked at him in disbelief.

"Are you trying to make her not fight?!" Rem argued.

Darkness' eyes widened before she looked at the ring, beginning to drool.

All three girls' expressions faltered.

Finding a successful path, Diablo decided to continue. "The more hits you get, the stronger the shocks get. But if you _get _hit it'll reset."

Without wasting a second, Darkness slipped the ring onto her left middle finger.

"Now, let's find the remaining Kobolds."

* * *

Shortly, the group stumbled on a larger pack of Kobolds.

On the edge of the pack, Shera stood slightly crouched behind a tree firing off shots at a few of them, hitting one in the forehead and another in the knee.

Rem readied her claws to take down another, but was surprised when Darkness shot past her and made for a collection of three Kobolds nearby. "H – Hey!"

Without wasting a movement, Darkness lowered her stance and swung, bisecting each beast in a single swing, her face reddening with a pleasured moan as the ring gave her three zaps of electricity. She then saw another running towards her and her body instinctively tensed up before something seemed to click and she dodged its strike, ramming her right knee into its abdomen hard enough to knock its feet off the ground.

Diablo's jaw was almost on the floor. '_It's almost frightening how much better she's doing…_'

"What level is she…?" Nanana questioned in disbelief.

Diablo frowned thoughtfully as he watched Darkness continue fighting. "She has to be… near Level Sixty…"

Knocking one Kobold on its back as she swung at another, Darkness turned to the downed monster and slammed her foot down with enough force that she shattered its skull.

Diablo practically flinched at the sight. "… Or higher."

Another Kobold snuck up to her and managed to strike her from behind with its bone club.

Darkness' face paled as she saw the Reverse Ring, which had been slowly darkening in color with each blow she landed, suddenly return to its standard silver color. "… Damn you…!" she cursed, hitting it with a spin kick so forceful it went straight through a nearby tree.

"Definitely higher," Diablo noted bluntly.

The canine beasts in the area slowly began to back away at the sight of Darkness, attempting to flee.

"Oh no you don't!" she declared, slamming her foot down and kicking off towards them, impaling one with her sword and using it to batter the remaining Kobolds.

"H – Holy crap…" Nanana gasped.

"I… have no idea at this point…" Diablo mumbled.

Sighing in exhaustion as she kicked the bloody mess that was once a Kobold off of her sword, Darkness shook the blood off and sheathed her blade before looking around. "I think… that's all of them…"

"Y – Yes, it is," Diablo responded, switching back to his usual persona. "Now, let's return to the Guild."

Nodding, Darkness rejoined the others as they left the area.

However, Diablo noticed the girl's labored breathing from fatigue and pulled one of the large red potions he had made earlier and handed it to her. "Here, to restore your strength."

"R – Really?" she asked, blushing slightly at the gesture.

"O – Of course. You're no use to me if you're exhausted."

Darkness merely nodded before downing the whole bottle.

Rem stared in disbelief before looking at Diablo. "Why are you wasting that much on just a little fatigue?"

"Is there something the matter with my decisions?" Diablo retorted.

"N – No, that's not what I mean. That's a Potion of Ultimate Healing, we can't afford to use those so easily."

Holding up the rest of the potions he crafted, he rebuffed, "I made nearly a dozen this morning."

Rem's entire body went stiff as she finally put the pieces together.

"Rem?" Shera asked, poking the girl's cheek gently.

"D – Do you know how much those are worth…?" Rem asked her horned owner, lost at his ambivalence.

Diablo felt nervous sweat at her pointed question. '_Of course I don't know how much they're worth! I don't know much about this world beyond the info I absorbed from Shera!_' "No. I do not concern myself with such mortal matters."

Furrowing her brow, Rem explained pointedly, "A single vial of that potion sells for two hundred and fifty Vals…"

"Really now…?" '_Seriously!? This kind of thing is something I made in the hundreds back in Yggdrasil, and they're worth that much here?!_'

Shera raised her handed excitedly with an idea. "Ooh, ooh, then how about we sell some?! We're short on money, and Diablo can make them really easy!"

Megumin nodded with fervent agreement. "Yeah! We'll be a better business than the Hild Familia!"

"Hild?" he questioned.

"A Familia based in Orario that focuses on potions. They make really high-quality stuff. Though apparently there's another Familia there called the Urd Familia they don't get along with. I don't know much about it beyond the fact Urd Familia has just one member and the goddess."

He nodded in understanding as he thought. "Ah. In that case we will do that. We must first find someone willing to buy them."

Leaning over to get his attention, Shera asked, "Why not the military or Adventurer Guild?"

Diablo shook his head firmly. "I'd rather not fuel the military, but we'll see about the Guild."

"Right," she chirped with a smile.

* * *

Sylvie looked over the red liquid inside the large vial thoughtfully for several moments before nodding to herself. "Whoa… these are definitely the right kind of potions…"

"Indeed," Diablo responded confidently, outwardly at least, as he sat across from her. "Now, let's talk price."

Looking over the bottle and thinking for several silent moments, Sylvie then turned her attention to him. "Hm… A hundred-fifty Vals."

Diablo huffed dismissively as he stood from his seat. "I'll take these elsewhere then. Two hundred at least."

Sylvie frowned slightly as he turned to leave, causing her to humph in response.

"Well?" he asked, turning back to her.

The rabbit-eared girl sighed in exasperation. "Fine, I'll buy ten off you for two thousand Vals."

"Deal," he answered with a smile.

* * *

"That's a lot of money!" Shera exclaimed at the pile of golden coins.

Sighing, Rem argued, "Yes, but we also need to consider the cost of ingredients."

Nanana added with a nod, "Then the best option is to go look at all the ingredients we need and figure out the price."

Shera tilted her head in confusion. "Why not just pick them ourselves?"

Diablo shrugged before explaining, "Not all of the ingredients can be obtained that easily. A potion of this quality requires two Blue Mountain Flowers, two Butterfly Wings, two heads of Imp Stool, and a specialized container."

"Oh?"

Nanana blinked in recognition. "Oh right, the vials made of malachite."

The elven girl put a finger on her chin in thought. "Why not mine it ourselves?"

"Malachite is hard to locate," Rem argued confidently. "It's usually only found deep inside caves, and due to the trace amounts of mana it gives off, Monsters are often attracted to it."

"Then it would be good training to wouldn't it?" she asked in further consideration.

Rem's ears twitched in mild annoyance. "… Can you decide if you're smart or stupid already?"

"Regardless, I still intend to check the prices," Diablo retorted firmly.

* * *

And so, with that in mind he went around the city, going to various shops looking at prices of the items in question.

After nearly an hour he found the information he needed.

"Hm… after adding everything up, it would cost one hundred twelve Vals to purchase the vials and ingredients on our own."

"Yeesh…" Nanana huffed in exasperation.

"So now, let's gather the ingredients on our own. Megumin, Aqua, this is enough Vals to purchase three vials for each of you. Try and find the cheapest ones you can throughout the city."

"Right!" Megumin cheered as she handed some of the coins to Aqua.

"Also, this money is only for the ingredients." His face going firmly threatening, he warned, "If you spend it on anything else we're going to have a problem."

Aqua felt a chill up her back and nodded profusely before the duo bolted off.

Turning to the others, Diablo explained, "Now, the rest of us will search outside for the ingredients while they get the receptacles."

"Right!" Darkness responded with a salute.

* * *

"Is this the right one?" Darkness asked, holding up a tall flower with numerous purple petals.

"No," Diablo answered bluntly before returning to the hunt himself.

"This one?" she repeated, holding up a flower with numerous red buds.

"No," he rebuffed yet again.

"How about this?" She held up a sweet-smelling plant with long leaves.

"That's not even a flower!"

"Got one!" Shera cheered, holding up a tall flower with bright blue petals.

"Good work," Diablo complimented with a smile as she ran up to him.

Rem watched this curiously before noticing a butterfly fluttering by in front of her. Waiting just a moment she reached up and snatched it out of the air effortlessly. "Got it. We just need a few more."

Diablo nodded in understanding. "I'll leave catching the butterflies up to you."

"Understood," she answered before grabbing another one off a bush in front of her.

"The rest of us will look for the flowers and the mushrooms."

"Okay…" Darkness replied, almost sounding disappointed.

Rem perked her ears as she scanned the area for more butterflies and took off chasing them, occasionally hopping and jumping to catch them, her tail swishing behind her as she ran.

Diablo watched the Pantherian girl chase them with minor awe. "… Cute."

"Ahem," Nanana coughed, getting him refocused.

Coughing into his hand, he tried to hide his adoration of the petite girl. "A – Anyway, let's move on."

"Right," Nanana answered before they began moving again.

Darkness then held up the same flower Shera had picked. "This…?"

Diablo nodded in affirmation. "Yes. Those are the Blue Mountain Flowers. Collect as many as you can find."

Darkness nodded with excitement. "Right!"

* * *

The sun began to set in the distance as Nanana looked around the area, carrying a large basket filled with blue flowers. "Looks like this area is picked clean of flowers."

"Hey!" Shera called out suddenly with excitement. "Over here!"

The others turned to her and began to gather when she pointed nearby.

"There's a big cave over here!"

"Oh?" Diablo hummed with interest.

Shera nodded excitedly. "Actually, Megumin told she heard some people talking about this cave in town. They say there's a really strong monster inside. And any soldiers that go in to defeat it end up dead."

Nanana grinned with enthusiasm as she slammed her fists together. "And such a powerful Monster must be surrounded by malachite."

Diablo nodded in accord. "Meaning we've got ourselves a mine."

"Provided we can clear it, of course," she added.

"There is no question, now let us go," he declared.

* * *

The group encountered little more than simple monsters, wolves, goblins, kobolds, and such, upon entering.

At one point they were attacked by a monster resembling a giant armadillo, curled up in a ball and rolling toward them.

"H – Hard Armored!" Shera exclaimed before Diablo swung a fist and sent the creature slamming against a wall so hard blood splashed onto the stone.

"Pathetic," the horned man lamented.

Nanana similarly found little resistance as a large pink rabbit with a horn on its head charged at her with several of its allies. With small effort she smashed the one at the head of the small pack with both fists, practically liquifying the beast. "Damned rabbits! Why are there freakin' Needle Rabbits everywhere!?"

Shera, mildly disappointed and concerned, wondered aloud, "Isn't this supposed to be the home of a powerful Monster?"

"That's what it should be it seems," Diablo retorted, smacking away several other Needle Rabbits with a Hard Armored like beast that stood on two legs.

"Then why are they all so weak?" she asked, stepping aside of a blood splatter from Nanana stepping on a large insect.

"The weak follow the strong," Nanana explained plainly.

"Be that as it may, something seems off," Diablo remarked.

As if responding to his remarked, when they entered a large open area, a huge, green, winged, reptilian beast dropped from the roof with a deafening roar.

Shera lurched back in disbelief. "R – Rathian!?"

Darkness gained an excited shimmer in her eyes before Diablo raised a hand.

"You may have strength on your side, but it is not enough to deal with a Rathian of that size," he warned, saddening the masochistic knight.

The Rathian reared its head back forcefully.

On cue, Diablo rushed forward hard enough that several pieces of the floor went flying as a result, ducking under the powerful pressure wave of the Monster's roar before slamming a fist firmly into the side of its head.

The Rathian did not even have time to roar in pain as part of its hide exploded with blood and it went flying against a wall before dropping limply to the ground.

"Okay, what the hell!?" Nanana howled. "I didn't think Rathians appeared in caves! Guess that's what was drawing everything though…"

"I would not be so sure," Diablo warned.

The lilac-haired beauty looked at him in bewilderment. "Why not?"

"All of the Monsters we're encountering are female."

The three girls just stared at him, lost in confusion. "… Eh?"

Pointing to one of the Kobold corpses behind them, he explained, "Look. Male Kobolds have fangs, none of these do." He then motioned to one of the large, red reptiles they had defeated on the way there. "Only female Deathsaurus have the forward-facing horns. Not to mention I only see this Rathian but we have yet to encounter a Rathalos."

All three stared in growing realization and befuddlement.

"That's so weird…" Shera thought aloud, her ears wiggling curiously.

"Indeed," Diablo noted in agreement as he looked around the area.

Darkness, looking over many of the bodies, noticed something and called the others' attention to it. "Hey, there's a large door over here."

Diablo approached the rusty steel door in thought, looking it over. "Must be the boss room. Then we head in."

"No preparations?" Nanana questioned.

"If it's anything like the rest of the cave, we won't need any," Diablo argued before slamming the doors open.

The group stepped in and saw an odd situation, dozens of stone statues scattered around the large room. Humans, Pantherians, Armorsaurus, and various other beasts and people all represented.

Looking around, Nanana's eyes suddenly went wide with horror. "M – Momo, I think I know why there aren't any male Monsters… I know where they all went…"

Shera, however, looked at her, curious. "Really? Where?"

"In here. These… statues."

The elf looked at her, bewildered. "… Huh?"

"Look at all these statues, they look too unique and specific to have been carved, not a single one looks identical to the others."

Shera put a finger on her chin in confusion. "But… then how'd they become statues…?"

"Petrification magic," Diablo answered firmly. "Visual based by the looks of it."

Aqua looked at him incredulously. "How can you tell that?"

He pointed to the rear of the room, a spot caked in thick darkness. "They're all looking in the same direction."

"Ah…" Aqua mumbled, realizing it herself.

The group's discussion was disrupted by a loud, angry voice echoing through the chamber. "So… a Demon Lord decides to invade my home and slaughter those who live with me…"

Diablo tensed as he began to feel the presence of the speaker.

Almost immediately the one in question appeared, an immense, serpentine creature with a black underbelly and golden scales, however, instead of a snake's head, at the top was the upper torso of a beautiful woman with long, flowing, bright violet hair and dark pink eyes, golden wings folded at her sides, her hair collecting into large clumps ending in massive, glowing snakelike heads that hissed and growled. "Do the promises of Milim Nava mean nothing these days or do you all decide it's best to just humor her and ignore her word when it suits your needs?" she asked with a calm tone, etched in fury.

Diablo narrowed his eyes in thought. '_Milim… why does that name sound familiar…?_'

Her eyes glowing with anger, the serpentine woman rose up on her tail, towering over any in the group, her wings spreading out massively, filling almost the entire roof of the cave. "Well? Are you going to answer, Invader?"

Aqua instantly ducked behind Diablo, quivering in terror.

The woman stopped momentarily and began to sniff the area. "This smell… a terrified goddess…"

"Hyee!" Aqua shrieked as she tried to tuck further behind Diablo.

The woman huffed dismissively as she looked at Aqua. "So, it's the worthless one then. It figures you would cling to someone stronger like a parasite."

Diablo, maintaining an outward calm exterior, questioned, "Are you the one who petrified the ones in this room?"

"Of course," she answered bluntly. "They tried to force themselves on those under my protection and were made example of, Invader. Now then, answer my question. Why are you here, killing those under my protection, Invader?"

Shera, trembling where she stood, shakily answered, "W – We had heard Adventurers were going missing here and thought there might be a strong Monster and some malachite…"

That, however, only seemed to enrage the beast woman further. "So… you came in here… slaughtered my people… just for those stones…?" she asked, each pause causing the wrathful glow in her eyes to strengthen. "Why would you not simply tell those who guard the cave instead of just killing them!?"

Megumin raised an eyebrow curiously. "Because people can't talk to Monsters…?"

"Did you even try!?" she howled, the ground underneath her tail buckling.

Diablo narrowed his eyes as he reached behind his cloak. '_I don't foresee this ending well…_'

One of her hair tendrils reared up, the back of its mouth glowing before it unleashed a blast of raw energy.

Diablo instantly raised a hand, creating a magical barrier that blocked the shot, but not without making him slide back where he stood several centimeters. '_There's… a lot of force in those attacks…_'

"You all don't care!" she bellowed. "Milim said she would ensure no Demon Lords try to enslave or kill them but none of that matters to you, does it!?" she shrieked as she fired several more blasts of energy.

"Ssttoopp!" Nanana shouted, interrupting the fight momentarily. "You keep talking about this Milim, but none of us know who that is!"

Almost instantly, Shera, Rem, Megumin, and Darkness looked at Nanana, Diablo, and Aqua with disbelieving shock.

Nanana twitched an eyebrow as sweat rolled down her cheek. "Okay… _we_ have no idea who that is…"

"You… _can't_ be serious…" Megumin noted.

"I'm sure even Shera knows who Milim Nava is," Rem remarked coldly, garnering a pout from the elf.

Diablo attempted to deflect the accusation of ignorance, "… I – I am a Demon Lord from a different world, so I knew little of this world when I came here," by simply falling into it.

Shera blinked in consideration. "Huh… that makes sense."

Darkness nodded in agreement. "Yes. Just about everyone knows the name of the daughter of Grimanava."

Diablo's entire body went stiff at that name.

The winged woman frowned thoughtfully at the group. "So… you truly do not know her?"

Diablo, however, was paying no attention to her questioning. '_Grima's daughter…? Grima exists here… and has a daughter…?_'

Clenching her clawed fists, the woman glared down at Diablo and the others. "Your ignorance won't bring them back, neither will slaughtering the lot of you." Arming her claws, she added with a snarl, "But it will ease the pain I and the others feel at their loss!"

Nanana realized that the battle was soon to be unavoidable and tried one last attempt to prevent it. "Wh – What if we brought them back to life?"

She lowered her stance slightly, but glared disbelievingly at the young woman. "Do you take me for a fool? Death is permanent, irreversible."

Nanana then shouted in her mind to Diablo, '_PLEASE tell me you still have those Resurrection Wands, Diablo!_'

Nodding in understanding, he reached behind his cloak and pulled out a small, red-capped wand, and showed it to the beast woman. "I'll get right on it."

She stared at him, suspicious and bewildered. "What are you planning?" she demanded as he approached the Rathian they had defeated earlier.

"To revive her," he explained before aiming the wand at the Monster.

She stared silently as he merely stood in front of the downed creature before light suddenly emerged from the wand and enveloped the Monster, soon fading away.

The Rathian's body twitched slowly before its eyes opened and it moved itself up, as it did, it saw Diablo and began to roar.

Before it could move, however, the serpentine woman rushed over to it, nearly crushing Aqua, and cradled the Rathian's head in her hands. "It is okay now, Rakala, no one is going to hurt you now…"

"Help…" Aqua begged pitifully.

"Well?" Diablo challenged. "Do you trust it was a misunderstanding now?"

She stared at him incredulously. "… Very well. Revive the others and we will talk."

"R – Right…" he answered with a hint of discomfort that he did his best to hide. '_That'll use up so many Wands…!_'

* * *

Diablo sighed as he revived the last of the Monsters his group had fought on the way in. '_Forty-three Wands later…_'

'_Well this has been an odd day…_' Nanana muttered in her head.

'_More like a pain in the ass day…_'

"Good," the snake woman answered as she looked over the Hellhound in thought. "I trust you will do them no more harm?"

"Provided they don't attack first again," Rem retorted.

"They attack those that threaten them to defend this home."

Diablo put a hand up before Rem could response. "Arguing fault will get us nowhere, it is over. Now, beastwoman, do you have a name?"

"Yes, I do. It is Gorgon."

Nanana tilted her head in thought. "Gorgon? Like Medusa?"

Gorgon shot a glare at her. "How do you know that name!?"

"Wh – Where I'm from, there's a legend of a woman named Medusa who became a Gorgon…" she answered hurriedly.

She stared at Nanana with bewilderment. "'Became' a Gorgon…?"

"Um… yes," the pink-haired girl answered uncertainly.

"My daughter did not 'become' a Gorgon, she always has been."

"… Ah…" Nanana mumbled, her head beginning to hurt.

"Though her elder sisters did enjoy tormenting my sweet little Medusa when she was little…" With a heavy sigh, Gorgon lamented, "Oh I hope Athena is keeping her word and looking after her…"

* * *

In a small shack deep within a vast forest, a figure sat at a table, eyes glistening with mischief, staring over a round glass orb which projected images of Diablo's actions and battles. A wide smirk spread across the person's lips as they watched the events unfold. "This is getting more exciting the longer it goes. It seems the audience agrees too."

* * *

**And fin! Thus ends the fourth chapter of Demon Lord's Adventurers! Hopefully everyone enjoyed it, be sure to let me know if you did. If you were confused, unsure, or have any questions about anything, such as the sources of new characters in the story, be sure to leave your queries in a review and I will do my best to address them in the next reviewer response. If you did not like the chapter, review if you feel so inclined, but more than just that you dislike it would be appreciated. Anyway, enough waffling, see you next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter V**

**Hello! Yes, back so soon with more, this is the story that has my inspiration most right now, so it is what I am doing. Hope everyone enjoyed the previous chapter, seems at least a fair few did, which is always nice. Let me know if you like this one as well. Thanks to Bakuto Masaki for following along with my... insanity, as always. That said, I suppose I should stop waffling and move on to the reviewer responses.**

**superpierce: If you dissect the name you can figure it out, but revealing more than that right now would spoil too many plotpoints.**

**Zaraki6: Something akin to one of those may be a possibility.**

**Skull Flame: Based on my limited interactions with you, I wouldn't call them rare.**

**It's certainly not an undesirable condition.**

**Sucker bet.**

**Yes. And kind of, though not to the degree I'm sure you're thinking.**

**That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, Tensei Slime for short.**

**Indeed, he'll need them.**

**No, you got the right version.**

**Ominous is putting it lightly.**

**Eher: :) Peppering in a little Skyrim never hurt. Well, unless you're the Empire.**

**freeforall546: Okay, I have to admit laughing embarrassingly loudly at that.**

**Lawoi: It'll certainly shake things up.**

**Why would I deny it? Scheming MILFs are some of the best MILFs. And to a degree I'm almost insulted you felt the need to ask that question.**

**Hey: God Fuckin' Speed.**

**And done! Thus ends the reviewer responses, and on to the important part!**

* * *

Gorgon grumbled, "My daughter did not 'become' a Gorgon, she always has been."

"… Ah…" Nanana mumbled, her head beginning to hurt.

"Though her elder sisters did enjoy tormenting my sweet little Medusa when she was little…" With a heavy sigh, Gorgon lamented, "Oh I hope Athena is keeping her word and looking after her…"

Suddenly, Shera raised her hand curiously. "Question."

Gorgon looked at her and nodded. "What?"

"So your race is the same as your actual name?"

Gorgon nodded plainly. "Yes, considering I am the first, adorable plump elf."

Shera stared at her in silent bewilderment for a moment. "Then who's your mother?"

Gorgon looked at the befuddled beauty silently for several moments.

"What?" Shera asked innocently.

Gorgon stared silently for several more seconds. "I'm… afraid I don't understand the question."

"If you're the first Gorgon, then who was your mother?"

Diablo, tired, sighed. "If you're done, we need to begin collecting the ore."

Gorgon put up a hand, interrupting him. "Hold on, Demon Lord."

"Yes, Gorgon?"

"Before we continue this relationship, I must know your name."

"It is Diablo."

Gorgon nodded, though Nanana, off to the side, pouted. "I'm still sad you quit using Momonga…"

That got Gorgon's attention, as she suddenly straightened her back in surprise. "Wh – What?!"

Diablo raised an eyebrow, confused. "Miss Gorg –?" but was interrupted before he could finish his sentence.

"You're her father!?"

Diablo felt his confusion, and concern, rising exponentially. "… Who's father…?"

"Milim's!"

Diablo folded his arms in thought. "I do not bel – Grima!" he began before suddenly interrupting himself in realization.

"Where!?" Shera shouted, looking around frantically.

Diablo turned to her, not realizing he had spoken out loud, and tried to cover his tracks. "H – Huh? Erm, nowhere." '_That's why everything sounded so familiar…! It's the same Grima from the game! The one that helped me gain the Demon Lord Class!_'

'_You forgot that until now!?_' Nanana shouted at him, doing her best not to say it aloud.

'_It was a long time ago and the mission ended in her bedroom!_'

'_She never told you she was pregnant?!_'

'_As far as I knew she was just an NPC!_'

'_Obviously not! Now you're the neglectful baby daddy to a Demon God Dragon!_'

Diablo's expression suddenly dropped sharply. '_… It's sad to say that somewhat lines up with the rest of my life…_'

Nanana stared at him in surprised sadness. '_… What?_'

Before the conversation could continue, Gorgon again spoke up. "Lord Diablo, while I do apologize for how my people acted toward you, I must still chide you for acting in kind."

"R – Right," he answered unsurely, his mind being drawn in too many conflicting directions.

"Now, is it correct to assume it is those rocks you came for? Nothing else?"

Diablo nodded. "That is correct. Unless you feel you have something to offer."

Gorgon smirked slyly. "If I didn't know the kind of woman Grima was, I would think you are asking for me."

Diablo just stared at her in disbelief, the girls staring at him knowingly. Diablo coughed into his hand and retorted, "I assure you, that was not my intention."

Gorgon nodded firmly. "I assumed so. Otherwise Grima would never have mated with you."

"So I can trust you and your people will harvest the materials? I will compensate you for your efforts."

"Indeed we shall. And thank you."

"Very well. We shall return soon. Let's go," he urged to the others, Shera nodding with a smile as they left.

After leaving the cave, she looked at him in thought. "How long should we wait for them to gather it all up?"

Diablo put a hand to his chin in consideration. "I will check tomorrow."

"Right!" she cheered.

* * *

As the group left the cave, they met with Rem, who held a basket filled with butterfly wings.

Shera looked at the sparkling wings in admiration. "Ooooh! Rem is such a good bug catcher!"

Diablo raised an eyebrow as he noticed Rem's expression stay static as she looked at him, her tail slowly swishing side to side. "At any rate, the only ingredient we're waiting on is the malachite."

"Question," the Pantherian interjected.

"Yes?"

"How will we turn the malachite into vials? We don't have a kiln."

Diablo remained silent for a moment. '_… I hadn't thought of that…_' "We will get one."

"Right…" she replied, uncertain.

* * *

Upon returning to the city, the sky red with twilight, Diablo noted the large amount of vials and bottles Aqua and Megumin had managed to buy throughout the day. "I see you two bought quite a lot."

The girls just groaned in exhaustion.

However, Darkness seemed to remember something and tapped Diablo on the shoulder. "Oh, Diablo, I'd like to ask you something"

"Go ahead."

"I heard you've established a Familia."

"I have," he answered plainly.

"I would like to join," she replied firmly.

"I understand. Let's return to the inn then."

* * *

Upon returning, and setting the supplies for the potions aside, Diablo looked at Darkness and ordered, "Right. Take off your armor."

Darkness' face turned vibrantly red with a mix of excitement and shame. "R – Right here, now?! You want to have your way with me before I can join!?"

Diablo slammed his hand on the nearby table, attempting to hide his flushed face, and shot back, "No! I need to inscribe the Falna on your back!"

"Oh…" Darkness answered with a sigh, almost sounding disappointed.

Diablo could only groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Geez… pervert…" Shaking his head of the thoughts, he pointed to the bed. "Expose your back and lay down." Thinking for a moment, he decided to head off any of her whimsies. "Only because I need to inscribe it onto your skin directly."

"R – Right…" Darkness answered weakly as she removed the upper portion of her armor.

Diablo, positioning himself next to her to begin writing, could not deny that, despite her obvious strength, her body was not overwhelmed with muscle, and her back was firm but not hard. He shook his head as he realized he was getting off topic with his thoughts.

"W – Well…?" Darkness asked apprehensively due to the long silence.

"Q – Quiet, I need time to work," he chided. Lightly pricking his finger and beginning the inscription process, he did the best he could to stay focused on writing her Falna instead of her soft, white skin, firm muscles, and round pillows the spilled out as she lay face-down. "Th – There, done…" he gasped as he leaned back, feeling his self-control nearly faltering. '_Dammit… why is someone so crazy so attractive…?!_'

Darkness leaned up slightly, surprised, and somewhat disappointed. "That's it?"

Diablo, putting a hand up to block the sight of her pillowy twins. "Yes, that's it, now get dressed."

Darkness nodded slowly as she reapplied her armor.

Diablo released a sigh, doing his best to keep it quiet from the others. "I suppose that is it for now. Get some rest"

* * *

The next morning, just after the sun had risen, Diablo made his way back to the cave, and saw a small Golem waiting outside the entrance. Motioning to it, the creature turned around and entered the cave, Diablo following behind.

"Now… let's see how well they did," he noted to himself.

After a short walk they reached one of the antechambers near the mouth of the cave and there Diablo saw a small pile of variously sized pieces of light green rocks mixed in with pieces of pure stone and other materials.

"Well?" Gorgon asked as she slithered up to him.

Diablo nodded firmly. "I'm impressed. They are an amazing work force."

"Of course they are. Monsters don't waste time with petty squabbles about workflow or time, they simply do the job they need to until they no longer have the energy to competently perform it."

"Well you can give them all my thanks. Now, the issue of payment."

"Ah, that's right, you did insist on such a thing. And it would be appreciated."

"I assume money has no use to your kind."

"It does not. Money is only useful when bartering with the 'sentient' races, as they call themselves. We merely require something useful to us."

Diablo put a hand on his chin in thought. '_Hm… money isn't something they need, and no amount of it will change that. Food? I'm not too sure on that either, with this forest here, they likely get all the food they need. That, and… do Monsters even need to really eat? Ah, wait, what about mana?_' After a moment rummaging behind his back, Diablo pulled out a large, luminescent stone.

Gorgon seemed surprised at that. "A Magic Stone?"

'_That's what they call it? I think the game just called them Soul Gems._' "Yes, and loaded with mana. How about a certain number of these, of certain sizes, in return for the ore you mine?"

"I can accept that. We Monsters do not necessarily need to eat, as we feed on mana, but it does help us obtain and store excess mana when needed. Magic Stones provide the purest source of it."

"Good. What I hold is a medium sized stone. While the number of ores they mined is impressive, not all of it is pure malachite, like we need, some of it is simply pieces of stone or other materials, though those other materials we can use. How about five of these for that pile? More if you provide purer ore chunks."

Gorgon nodded in agreement and held out her hand for the stones. "I will relay this to the others. Now to transport it all."

Diablo put up a hand to stop her. "That will not be an issue."

"Oh? Do you have a container for them?"

"Of sorts," he answered as he approached the ores, grabbed several, held up in the air, and a magic circle appeared in midair that he dropped them towards, before they vanished.

Gorgon watched with interest. "What did you do to them?"

"It is a… spell, I know. It is called Inventory; it allows me to store items in another location and withdraw them at will."

"A useful spell indeed."

As he began placing them into his Inventory, he thought something and turned to Gorgon. "As useful as it is, placing this many in there individually is rather time consuming. Would it be possible to have some sort of container to put them in?"

Gorgon nodded and released a low, clicking growl.

After a moment, a large spider that, rather than a typic spider head, had something vaguely resembling a human torso attached to its thorax.

'_An Arachne!_' Diablo exclaimed in his head. '_They're far larger than I remember in the game._' He stood silently as Gorgon seemed to speak with Arachne in a series of hisses and clicks, the spider occasionally responding in kind.

Turning to him, Gorgon explained, "She says she will craft a sack for you to use out of her webbing if you don't mind waiting a few minutes."

"I have nothing else of extreme importance it would interfere with."

* * *

After less than ten minutes, the spider approached Diablo and handed him a large, well-crafted bag made from silk. He was impressed at the elasticity and apparent strength of the material, and began loading the ore pieces into the bag before dropping the entire sack into his Inventory.

"Anything else?" Gorgon asked, blinking in surprise when Diablo pulled out a very small Magic Stone. "What are you doing with that?"

Looking up at her, he explained, "To compensate her for her help. I do not want you or your people to feel as though this is a one-sided relationship. If you do something for me or mine, or give us something, I want the act to be returned in kind, and the reverse as well. So I am giving this to… actually, what is her name?"

"She does not have one."

Diablo blinked several times, perplexed. "Why not?"

"Most Monsters do not, while they have more intelligence than true animals, most of our interactions do not require the use or need for individual signifiers, as we do not operate in the same societal structure as the mortal races."

Diablo frowned further. "I see… so be it." After handing the stone to the Arachne, he made his way out of the cave. '_It's not something I have the time, or proper resources, to address. But at some point I need to see about giving them names._'

* * *

"When will Diablo be back…?" Shera pouted as she sat on the bed.

"I don't know…" Rem answered, somewhat concerned.

Nanana, however, sat calmly looking out the window. "Three… two… one…"

Diablo, as if on cue, entered the room with the silk bag of ore slung over his shoulder. "The first day's mining is done."

Shera practically jumped to her feet at the size of the pack. "Big bag!"

"And almost all of it is ore."

"Whoa…" she intoned, her ears drooping in awe.

"Before we can get any further we need to process it, then mold it into vials."

"Right…" Aqua remarked, realizing how much work was ahead of them.

"And then we start selling."

"Right!" Darkness answered with energy.

"The potions," Diablo stated pointedly, heading off any potential misunderstanding.

Darkness flinched back, drawing circles on the nearby end table with her finger. "I – I knew that…"

"Then let's get to it," Nanana urged, standing up.

"How do we process the ore?" Shera asked, confused but intrigued.

Nanana glanced at Diablo and began relaying the process to him.

"We wash all of the dirt and debris off, then heat it slightly, at which point it will soften for molding."

"Meaning we first need somewhere to wash it all," Rem noted.

Almost immediately, everyone turned to Aqua.

The blue-haired goddess looked around in confusion. "Wh – What? Why is everyone looking at me?"

"You have control over water, don't you?" Nanana asked. "So you can at least make yourself useful this time."

Aqua flinched back in realization. "Y – You want me to wash all that…?"

"Well it's not like you're doing a whole lot else besides eating up our money with booze."

Aqua nearly collapsed at the accusation. "I – I'm not…!"

Rem folded her arms and argued, "I may have only known you a short while, but I can still smell alcohol, and I know you've been drinking some somewhere."

Aqua completely slumped to the floor that. "I'm sorry…"

"Then prove it by using what limited power you actually have to clean these things," Nanana chided. "Once it's done we'll come back."

Aqua grumbled before looking at the huge pile of dirt-covered ores Diablo left behind. She then began quietly sobbing.

"I took this piece from Aqua as soon as she cleaned it," Diablo explained as he held out a cleaned piece of ore. "We now need to heat it to the point it softens."

Everyone just stared silently.

"Um…" Shera began slowly. "Does anyone know fire magic…?"

"I have Explosion," Megumin answered confidently.

"We need to heat it up, not vaporize it," Nanana grumbled.

Diablo placed the ore chunk on the ground nearby.

"What are you doing?" Shera asked.

"I'm going to use low level fire magic on it," he remarked. '_Okay… let's try something simple, like a second or two of Flames. Something really weak._' After a moment of stillness, a gout of fire shot from his hand at the ore chunk, enveloping it momentarily before dying out.

The girls all looked at the chunk of stone as it swiftly cooled.

"There. Now it's soft enough," Diablo noted. "Someone needs to mold the vials."

Shera reached a hand up excitedly. "Ooh, can I try?!"

"Certainly," Diablo answered, handing it to her.

Shera began folding and kneading the clay-like rock with her hands, but found it began to stiffen swiftly and so tried her best to finish molding it. As it became incredibly stiff she tried to force its shape only for it to snap. Staring in defeat she looked up at Diablo sadly. "It broke…"

"Yeah…" he muttered in return before he realized she was beginning to tear up and tried to think of a way to comfort her.

"Y – You'll get it eventually…!" Rem consoled with unexpected optimism.

"You really think so…?" Shera asked suspiciously, Diablo and the others nodding repeatedly.

Diablo added, "Of course." Confirming the malaise seemed to have lifted from her, he sighed in relief as he continued planning. "In the meantime, I need to craft more of the potion."

"Right…"

Sitting across from the curious Megumin, Diablo stared thoughtlessly as he mixed and prepped the ingredients with his hands.

Megumin spotted something off and frowned curiously before looking at him. "Are you feeling okay, Diablo?"

"Of course, why?"

"You're not making them nearly as fast or as well as you were before."

Diablo winced upon realizing the scenario that was leading to that, but tried to find an excuse. "… I… am trying some different methods."

"Maybe you should use just the one that works," Rem suggested.

"P – Perhaps," Diablo answered, trying to hide his apprehension. '_But I can only use that when I'm staring at Shera's boobs!_'

Nanana sighed and turned to the elf, motioning to her. "Shera, come sit over here."

Shera blinked curiously at her. "Huh? Okay…" she answered curiously, sitting opposite Diablo.

Diablo, taking the hint, once again focused his attention on Shera's sweater puppets, doing his best to disguise that fact, and began once again preparing the potions in record time.

"Fast!" Darkness exclaimed, watching him.

"Y – Yeah," he muttered. '_Why is it like this…?_'

Shera blinked in thought and then grabbed a few of the ingredients and began mashing and mixing them. "Ooh… So… it's like this… then… this…" She then held up a complete, albeit low quality, vial of the potion. "Tahdah!"

Diablo looked at her in mild surprised before patting her head gently. "Good girl."

Shera just smiled brightly with an adorable giggle, her ears wiggling happily.

Aqua twitched an eyebrow enviously. "… I can do it too!"

Nanana folded her arms defiantly. "Prove it."

Aqua growled and began mixing and mashing the ingredients before presenting the results, purified water. "… I'll try again." Again she prepared the mixture, only for water alone to result. "… One more time," she grumbled as she attempted the mixture yet again, only for the same outcome yet again. "… One more –" but before she could try anymore, Nanana took the alchemy supplies away from her.

"That's enough of our ingredients wasted," Nanana chided, Aqua just slumping over, sobbing.

Diablo sighed in return.

Turning to him, she noted, "If we're going to make these vials properly, we need a kiln."

"Then I'll go buy one."

"Just buy one!?" Darkness exclaimed.

Diablo looked at her, perplexed. "Yes. Why?"

Tilting her head, Megumin asked, "Don't they cost exorbitant amounts of money?"

"What if we built one?" Rem suggested.

Diablo nodded in return. "Let's do that." '_Hm… How to build a kiln… Better ask…_' He then turned to the Pantherian. "Rem. Such trivialities are below my concern, so I am unaware how to build a kiln."

Nodding, Rem answered, "We would need to find a blacksmith or potter."

"Right. I'll leave such matters in your care."

Rem nodded firmly.

'_Mainly because I have no idea how to find either of those…_'

Nanana stared at him with a flattened brow. '_Have you tried looking for a sign with an anvil on it?_'

Diablo winced, beginning to sweat.

'_You idiot…_'

Shera blinked curiously as she looked between the two of them, curious. "Um…"

"Yes?" Diablo urged.

"Why is there mana flowing between your heads?"

Everyone in the room stared at her blankly.

Nanana, her jaw almost falling loose, questioned, "You… can see mana?"

Shera tilted her head in befuddlement. "Can't everyone?"

"No!" everyone shouted back, startling her.

"… Oh."

Diablo making the connection, asked, "Is that how you saw all those elves in the forest?"

"Yeah," Shera answered, nodding, albeit still perplexed.

Rem then began to shift where she stood uncomfortably.

"Rem?" Megumin asked, noticing the cat-eared girl's discomfort.

Diablo's blood froze when he realized a troubling possibility. '_Crap! If she says something about that, Rem could be in trouble!_'

Without a pause, Nanana took action. "Hey, Shera, what color is Diablo's mana?"

Shera looked at the pink-haired girl in thought. "What?"

"Doesn't the mana have colors to it?"

Her ears perked up in recognition. "Oh. Yeah." She then slowly panned around the room curiously. "Yours is blue. Megumin's is red. Darkness' is gold. Aqua's is… aqua. Rem's is green. And Diablo's is rainbow."

Nanana huffed before releasing loud laughter, hunching over and almost falling out of her seat.

Diablo was not so amused.

"Yours is fruity!"

'_Shut up… or I am poisoning the pudding._'

Nanana's laughter halted immediately with a look of horror. '_You wouldn't…_'

'_Try me._'

Nanana stared at him in terror before pouting and silencing her guffaws.

'_Good._'

Shera tilted her head in confusion. "Is that bad?"

Diablo merely waved a hand dismissively. "No. She is just an idiot."

Nanana smirked mischievously. '_Coming from the man that made the Four Knights._'

Diablo's entire body tensed as his face tinted red. '_It was just a phase!_'

Nanana responded with a victorious grin. '_Those four still exist though._'

Diablo only twitched an eyebrow angrily.

* * *

Later, the group wandered around Faltra looking for someone to make a kiln.

"Now where…?" Rem muttered to herself, looking around.

"Is there a potter here?" Shera wondered.

"I… think so…" Rem remarked, putting a hand on her chin in thought.

Not paying much attention to the two's back and forth, Diablo asked in his head, '_When do you plan to disconnect your Telepathy?_'

Nanana just shrugged. '_When you look like you actually know everything and not need me to ask for you._'

'_Right…_'

As they walked, Shera stopped and saw a shop with a sign hanging out front that a mortar and pestle emblazoned on it. "Is that it?"

"That is an alchemist," Diablo corrected.

"So they'd have one?"

Nanana shook her head in denial. "Probably not. Most alchemists just buy their vials, not make them."

Shera raised an eyebrow as she tilted her head in thought. "But wouldn't it make more sense to make them themselves? That away they'd know how strong the vial is and what it's made of."

Nanana did not have an answer for that and could only shrug. "Don't ask me…"

Diablo just looked at her before Rem once again grumbled, "Seriously… smart or dumb… Make up your mind!"

"Huh?" Shera hummed, not having heard the Pantherian.

"Forget it," Diablo urged, trying to head off another argument. "Let's see what this alchemist has for us."

* * *

Entering the small shop, the group looked around the main area, seeing a large variety of items, not just alchemical ingredients or potions, but unique accessories, equipment, and various magical items as well.

"I guess this is a general goods store rather than specifically a chemist," Diablo remarked, looking around. "Nice place, though."

"Where's the owner?" Aqua questioned, growing somewhat annoyed.

"Not su –" Nanana began before they heard a bump under the front desk and watched a small cup fall off and hit something soft.

"Owie…" a voice complained.

Diablo stared in surprise as someone stood up from the desk, a young woman with long, flowing, chestnut brown that reached her thin waist stood up, her voluptuous chest shifting in her tight-fitting purple robe as she did, only one of her dark chestnut eyes peeking out under her fringe, her fair skin almost shining.

The woman rubbed the top of her head in discomfort before bowing, her globes shifting in her robe. "W – Welcome to my shop, Wiz's. I'm the owner, Wiz."

"I am Diablo, Ms. Wiz," he answered, doing his best to keep his eyes off her chest.

She blinked several times in thought as she looked at him. "Diablo? I see. Is there something you need?"

Diablo looked around the room in consideration before deciding to get to the point. "… A kiln."

Wiz nodded in understanding. "A kiln? I see. Hm… I think we have one… but I've never used it, so I don't know if it works."

Diablo almost face-faulted in surprise at the answer.

"You're welcome to take a look," she offered.

"Th – Thank you, beautiful," he answered almost on reflex.

Wiz's expression stayed placid as her cheeks tinted red.

* * *

Diablo and the others followed Wiz to the far back of the shop and found a large, circular, stone, furnace-like structure on the rear wall of the building.

He looked the structure over curiously. '_If this were a computer I'd be able to understand everything about it in seconds, but this kind of thing is way outside my forte…_'

"This is in very good condition," Rem commented, examining the interior.

"That's good…" Wiz sighed with relief.

"How do we get it home?" Shera asked plainly, to which the others merely stared silently.

After a long silence, Diablo turned to Wiz in consideration. "… Wiz, how big of a place do you have here?"

She looked at him, unsure what he meant. "Huh? I own the entire three-story building. Though I only use a couple of the rooms."

"Then let's make a deal."

Tilting her head, Wiz offered, "Like what?"

"If you allow my Familia and me to live here and use your kiln we will sell you," he paused, pulling out a few of the potions he made, "these at twenty percent off."

Wiz looked at the potions in amazement. "These are… hold on, Familia? Wait, you're a deity!?" she exclaimed in shock.

Nanana answered before he could. "Something like that."

"And? What relevance does it have?" Diablo argued.

"I – I can't charge any kind of rent from you…!" the busty brunette stuttered uncomfortably.

"I insist," he argued bluntly.

"I… I see…" she trailed off, seeming to accept his demand and focusing more on the potion. "This is… where did you get this?"

"We didn't _get_ them," Rem explained. "Diablo made them."

"And we'd be willing to supply you with them," he added.

"R – Really…?" Wiz stammered in shock.

"Yes," he replied, firmly.

Wiz slumped back slightly, thinking heavily. "I – I see. Then feel free to pick whichever rooms you like."

Diablo gave a smile and nodded. "Thank you, Wiz."

Her face heated up before glancing at the ground. "R – Right."

He raised an eyebrow but decided to move his focus to the kiln. "Now to make those vials."

Rem raised an eyebrow in confusion. "How? Where's the ore?"

Diablo opened his Inventory and pulled out the bag of ore chunks. "Now let's begin." '_Okay… so my guess is that this works like smithing. But this doesn't look like a forge… hm…_'

Nanana sighed and spoke up, "Oh, mind if I make the first one?" '_Since you clearly have no idea what you're doing?_'

Diablo twitched an eyebrow with a smirk. "Not at all. You do need to earn your keep after all."

'_Mean Momo._' "Everyone watching? I know Diablo isn't much of a teacher."

Diablo put a hand on his chin thoughtfully. '_Hm… I wonder if I should sell the pudding._'

Nanana turned to the others with an overly sweet smile that Diablo found eerily familiar. "Don't get too close though, or I might end up throwing molten malachite in your face."

"Right," Diablo deadpanned.

"First you need to heat the ore until it melts. Once it has, you can bring it out and let it sit for a few minutes. It'll stay soft for a while after it cools, but if you wait too long it'll turn hard again, and you need to start over."

"Right," Shera answered, paying close attention.

Diablo folded his arms in thought. '_This takes too long… I wonder if I can just make one… Probably not, there's no spell for that._'

Nanana retorted, '_Plus you'd make me look pretty silly. Also, I think you're underestimating magic a little._'

'_Eh?_'

Turning her attention to Wiz, Nanana asked, "Hey, Wiz, you're a Sorcerer, right?"

Wiz looked at her, surprised by the question. "O – Of sorts, yes."

"Mind telling me a little about magic while we wait?"

Wiz nodded slowly, somewhat befuddled. "Oh. Um, I don't mind, but I don't explain things very well."

She put a finger on her chin thoughtfully. "Hm… okay, then how about this? Are spells the only way to use magic?"

Wiz shook her head in return. "No. They simply allow people to easily regulate their mana to activate magic. But the essence of magic is how your mana flows. If you have enough control over that then you can do things spells normally aren't capable of."

Diablo narrowed his eyes, thinking, before Shera drooped her ears in defeat. "I wish I could do stuff like that. But all I know are a few spells for archery."

Rem retorted, "Well your inclination is Archer, not Sorcerer. I don't know why you're so focused on being a Sorcerer."

Puffing her cheeks, Shera argued, "Because, being just an Archer would be lonely and boring. If I'm a Summoner then I can always have a cute Summon around!"

Diablo just stared at her. '_So cute…_'

Megumin interjected, "Did you forget you've got all of us?"

Rem chided, "Not really one-shot wonder."

"Quiet kitty-cat," Megumin shot back.

"No."

"Okay, that's almost ready to go. Now for the hard part. Do you have any clay?"

Nodding, Wiz brought out a large chunk of clay and handed to her.

"Perfect. Diablo, a vial?"

Diablo nodded and handed her one of the empty vials Aqua and Megumin had bought previously.

"What are you planning with this?" Wiz questioned as Nanana began forcibly packing all of the clay in and around vial.

"A mold," she answered before flicking the packed in vial with her finger, causing it to crack and shatter.

The others watched in curious disbelief as she shook all of the pieces out of the clay mold.

"Perfect," she remarked with a smile before sticking the clay in the kiln as well for a few moments. "Now to make it. Once this mold dries we can pour the malachite in and it'll take the shape. This'll be a lot quicker and easier than hand-shaping each vial within the short window of time the malachite stays malleable."

"Good," Diablo added.

"And done," Nanana noted as she pulled out the mold from the kiln. "Darkness, your sword please?"

Raising an eyebrow, the armored woman handed her weapon over, which Nanana used to deftly carve the mold in half before returning it.

"There, now we just need to pour in the malachite, let it sit for a few seconds, and then take it out and done." To demonstrate, she squeezed the two halves together and dropped the molten malachite inside. After a few seconds she pulled the mold apart and inside was the fully-formed bottle.

"So pretty…!" Shera cooed at the reflective colors on the vial.

"All that's left is the seal."

"Seal?" Rem asked, confused.

"These things require a special seal so that the potions don't degrade."

Diablo nodded in agreement. "Indeed." '_How do you know so much about them?_'

'_When you guys weren't online, all I had was time. So I read the flavor text. On everything. It talks about this. That and I watched videos on the internet. Mostly cats._'

Diablo sighed in response. '_… Explains the detail put into our super weapon, and Albedo._'

'_Yup!_' she chirped.

"Now to place a seal," Diablo remarked before placing his hand over the bottom of the vial, which glowed softly before fading, leaving an intricate marking on the base.

Nanana stared in surprise. '_Huh, so you do know some stuff._'

Diablo huffed confidently. '_I remember the exact appearance of each item in the game._'

Nanana flattened her brow in response. '_Ah. And yet you never read the flavor text?_'

'_It had no bearing on gameplay, so I had no reason to._'

Shera tilted her head as she watched them. "Um…"

"Yes?"

"You're both connected more."

"Hm?"

"Connected?" Megumin asked, confused.

"Their mana link," Shera explained.

The others all stared at the duo.

Rem narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Oh."

Diablo began to sweat in concern. '_Uh-oh…_'

Rem just moved the conversation. "So how many vials do we need?"

Diablo scratched the back of his head as he thought. "I'd say we have enough ingredients for about one hundred potions."

"That's a lot," Darkness noted.

Rem nodded in return. "That should get us about three thousand Vals."

"Indeed."

"I'll finish making the vials," Nanana offered as she stuck more malachite in the kiln.

"Shera and I will prepare the potions," Diablo added.

"I'll help!" Megumin cheered.

Diablo frowned slightly.

"I will too," Darkness added as well.

Diablo's frown deepened.

Aqua opened her mouth to speak, only to be cut off.

"No."

Aqua slumped her shoulders sadly.

* * *

Inside, Diablo sat down to prepare more of the potions before realizing Shera was sitting next to him unlike normal, with Darkness, who had removed some of her armor to fit in the small room, sitting across from him. '_… Crap._'

Darkness looked over the pile of ingredients in thought. "So, how do we do this?"

Diablo gulped slightly. "J – Just watch. I don't have the time to bother explaining it."

Darkness nodded and leaned in to watch intensely, her sizable bust jiggling in her skintight suit.

Diablo decided not to fight the situation and just stared at his targets.

"Whoa! So fast!" Megumin exclaimed watching him.

Shera frowned slightly in response. "Yep! Though he did it a little slower this time. I wonder why?"

Diablo twitched an eyebrow as he looked away to reset his mind. '_Two big reasons… Wait… I wonder…_' "Megumin."

"Huh?" she sputtered, not expecting him to address her directly.

"Come sit over here and watch."

She nodded enthusiastically. "Right!" She rushed over and pushed Darkness aside. "Move it!" she demanded before sitting in front of him.

Diablo then did his usual focus attempt as he worked with the potion ingredients.

Shera furrowed her brow in confusion. "Huh, that was kinda slower…"

Diablo practically slammed his face into the floor. '_So it's true! It's the boobs! The bigger they are the faster I make the potions!_'

Nanana, having heard his lamentations, chastised, '_… You're pathetic._'

* * *

"Oh my, there's so many," Wiz cooed as she looked at the number of potions on her counter.

"Of course there are," Diablo retorted proudly.

Wiz stared silently in thought for a few seconds before looking up at him. "And you'll really let me have these for twenty-four Vals?"

He nodded firmly. "That's the deal I made."

Wiz smiled in relief before leaning back with a sigh, her voluptuous chest bouncing in her robe.

Diablo, his mind still not fully removed from the proverbial gutter, began thinking. '_… I wonder –_' "Hey, Wiz."

"Huh, yes?" she mumbled, not paying full attention at first.

"Want to see how they are made?"

She widened her one visible eye in surprise. "R – Really?"

"Yes, you might want to wear slightly less though. It can be quite hot when making potions."

"Liar," Nanana chided quietly.

Diablo put a hand on his chin, thinking. "Hm… I wonder how much the pudding will sell for."

"I'll go find her something skimpy!" Nanana cheered before taking off out the door.

"H – Hey… that's not… what I meant…" he grumbled, Nanana already gone.

Wiz just tilted her head to the side, confused.

* * *

Minutes later, Nanana walked back in with a bag in her hands. "Okay, there was a Grasswalker at the clothing store, and she said this would be best."

Wiz looked inside the bag and her face nearly turned crimson upon looking inside. "D – Do I really need to wear this…?!"

"Yep!" She then grinned and teased, "What? Don't wanna show Mo – I mean Diablo your sexy body?"

Wiz slunk back, whimpering in concern before Nanana leaned close and whispered into her ear.

Diablo strained his earing to listen but could not make out what she said.

Wiz looked at the girl in surprise. "Really…?"

"Yep!" Nanana chirped. "Now get out of here!" she urged as she grabbed Wiz by the arm.

"W – Wait a –!" Wiz stammered before dropping the bag, revealing the outfit to be a small series of fabric straps, her face deepening in color.

Diablo stared silently. '_This will be amazing…_'

Rem sighed in exasperation. "Geez… even for Shera that'd be – what the hell?!" she stopped in shock, looking at Diablo.

"What?" he wondered, perplexed.

"Y – You're bleeding!"

"Eh?"

Aqua held up a mirror to him, showing that blood was pouring from his nose.

Diablo just stared.

Nanana could not help but snicker as she pushed Wiz into a back room.

* * *

Wiz came out moments later wearing a single piece of white cloth that wrapped around her heaving bosom and clasped to a sarong at her waist. Uncomfortably she mumbled, "D – Don't stare too much please…"

"Sorry but you look amazing…" Diablo muttered mindlessly.

Shera pouted as she stood next to him. "Diabloo…"

The man quickly stiffened in recognition. '_Wait, did I say that out loud…?_'

'_Yep,_' Nanana answered with almost sadistic glee.

'_Shit…_' "Erm… don't worry, you're cute too, Shera…"

Shera merely smiled and giggled happily, Megumin and Rem staring venomously.

Darkness frowned silently before Diablo coughed into his hand. "A – Ahem. Let's begin."

Nodding, Wiz sat slowly in front of him, her face still practically glowing.

"N – Now watch closely…" he urged shakily.

"I am," she nodded slowly.

'_As am I!_' he shouted in his head.

The girls all stared in disbelief as he had a handful done in mere moments.

Wiz blinked bewildered. "H – Huh? Can you do that again? It was too fast for me to see…"

Diablo looked at her in stone-faced surprise. "… Sure."

The group all watched, impressed.

"It's even faster than normal!" Shera exclaimed.

"Yeah…" Megumin muttered.

Nanana pouted slightly. '_… Want to try mine next?_'

Diablo remained silent for a moment. '_… I'm good._'

Shera, excitedly, began wondering, "Hey, hey, why don't we go around and see if people will buy these?"

Diablo sat back and folded his arms in thought. "Sounds like a good idea."

Shera's excitement sobered slightly, thinking. "But… how do we carry them…?"

"Have someone pull a cart?" Rem offered.

"I'll do it!" Darkness shouted, her eyes twinkling with interest.

Diablo sighed before shrugging. "Get her hooked up to one."

* * *

Diablo walked behind the large cart of potions, his face twitching slightly at all the strange looks and whispers people were making in their direction as Darkness pulled the massive cart behind her, a panting smile of glee on her lips. '_This is so weird, but… she looks like she's enjoying it… Anyway… Best start attracting customers._' "We need to draw attention…"

Taking the initiative, Shera grabbed one of the bottles from the cart. "High Potions for sale! High Potions for sale!"

After several minutes passed of people watching curiously, a man in plain clothes walked up to the group curiously. "Are these the real thing?"

Shera nodded with a smile. "Sure are! Our god made them himself!"

Diablo winced as she said that, realizing it was drawing even more attention to himself.

A woman nearby put a hand on her cheek in shock. "So they are god made too…"

Instead of fighting it, Diablo decided to just steer into it. "H – Hmph, of course! I am one!"

After that, people began gathering around the cart in crowds.

He twitched an eyebrow before keeping up the act. "Now come one and all!"

Shera's ears wiggled excitedly at the people around them. "And be sure to come by Wiz's if you want more!"

* * *

Upon returning to the shot, Shera hopped with joy. "Woohoo! We sold out!"

Nanana nodded in return. "And promoted Wiz's shop."

Diablo leaned against a wall, holding himself up with a shaky arm. '_I hate crowds!_'

Megumin noticed his shaky stance and approached him. "You okay, Diablo?"

Diablo stood up straight and tried to make himself look composed. "O – Of course. I just find being around so many weaklings at once exhausting."

Nanana gave him a sideways glance.

Diablo saw this and shot her expression back. '_I will throw out the pudding._'

She scowled at him. '_Do it and I pour hot sauce on your dick._'

Diablo winced back before Shera pointed at the two and accused once again, "There it is again!"

Rem just sighed before Megumin wondered, "What now?"

Diablo answered, "We take the earnings back to Wiz and then gather more materials."

"Right."

* * *

Wiz stared in awe at the pile of money. "O – Oh my! So much! Over twenty-five hundred Vals!"

Diablo nodded in return. "Good. It's no surprise with potions crafted by me."

Nanana grumbled in response. "… Well the potion is useless without my vials." '_Honestly, how'd you manage the Guild so well if you're this insecure?_'

'_Because none of it was real, so I was able to keep some distance. My sisters were the only girls I ever interacted with in real life._'

Nanana stared at him in disbelief.

"When will you make more?" Wiz questioned.

Diablo argued, "We must gather more ingredients first."

"Right…" she replied in dismay.

"Then let's head out!" Shera cheered.

"Yeah!" Megumin added energetically.

Darkness raised a hand and asked, "Before that, shouldn't Diablo update our Status?"

Diablo stood silently, completely clueless on what she meant.

"Oh yeah…" Megumin mumbled, realizing the same matter.

"Update?" Nanana asked, since she could see Diablo was like a deer in headlights.

Wiz took the opportunity to explain, "When a Follower does anything, fights, cooks, or just about anything, they gain an energy called Excelia that increases their abilities. But that Excelia isn't applied to their bodies and minds until the Status is adjusted by the deity. Until the deity applies their blood and activates the Status, any advancements they may have achieved won't be applied."

"Indeed," Diablo added, bluffing that he understood.

Shera looked at her with awe. "You're really smart, Wiz."

Wiz looked at her feet with abashment. "Th – Thank you. I just do a lot of reading."

Diablo nodded in return before looking at the girls. "Indeed. Now those with a Falna please strip down."

Darkness almost instantly had her armor and bodysuit mostly off.

Diablo put up a hand to stop her. "… I didn't mean all the way."

She stopped and merely pulled up her top to expose her Falna.

Diablo just sighed. "Forget it. Turn around." As she did, Diablo examined the Falna before frowning in thought.

'_Something wrong?_' Nanana asked privately.

'_It's already changed. Her Stats are already different from before._'

Nanana was surprised by that and so decided to ask Wiz. "… Hey, Wiz, is it possible for a Falna to update on its own?"

Wiz put a hand on her chin thoughtfully. "I've never heard of that happening, but I suppose it's not impossible. It would need to be a Falna that's set up differently than most if that's the case."

"Like mine," Diablo noted. Looking at Darkness, he urged, "Anyway… well don't just stand there, Darkness, get dressed."

"Huh?" Wiz muttered.

Nanana scratched her head, thinking. "Hm… what about a Falna created by a Demon Lord?"

Wiz looked at her, puzzled, and blinked in thought. Twice. Three times. "… D – Demon Lord…?"

"God," Aqua corrected bluntly.

That seemed to confuse her even further. "Demon God?!"

"No, a god!" Aqua argued angrily.

Nanana smacked her on the head. "Shut it, he's a Demon Lord."

"No, he's a god!" Aqua shot back, rubbing her head in pain. "Because no demon can actively control angel golems!"

Nanana just stared silently. "… _That's_ what has you so confused?"

"I'm not confused, you are!" Aqua retorted, poking the girl.

"Erm, Miss Aqua," Wiz spoke up, "are you assuming Demon Lords are actual devils?"

Aqua folded her arms obstinately. "Well yeah, they are. And Diablo here is obviously a Draph God."

Wiz shook her head in denial. "No, they're not. Demon Lord is a term for infinitely powerful beings, regardless of their actual species. It's not just devils that can become Demon Lords. Dragons, fairies, vampires, even humans can become Demon Lords. All that is required is for them to meet the requirements of the Harvest Festival."

Aqua stared in silent, defeated disbelief. "… Wait, seriously…?"

"Yes, from what I understand, goddess Freya's sister is a Demon Lord, the goddess Hild is also one."

Aqua seemed to lose all color in her face as she stared at Wiz silently. "… So… he isn't a god…?"

"That's what I've been saying, stupid!" Nanana snarled.

"But he made a Familia!"

"Hild of the Hild Familia has one as well," Wiz argued before putting a finger on her cheek in consideration. "Although, I am uncertain if she made her Familia before or after becoming a Demon Lord."

Aqua sighed heavily, slumping her shoulders.

"Actually, I don't even know how long she has been a Demon Lord, especially since she's on the Demon Lord Council."

Nanana scratched her head before folding her arms under her bust as she looked at Wiz. "Anyway, so it's possible him being a Demon Lord caused the abnormality in the Falna?"

Wiz nodded in affirmation. "It's possible, yes, but I can't say for certain." She then turned her attention to Diablo directly. "On that note, how _did_ you gain the ability to control angelic golems?"

"A spell I learned from a fallen angel turned Demon Lord under my command," he explained.

Aqua blinked curiously. "Fallen angel turned… Elia!?"

"Who?"

"Silver hair, mismatched eyes?"

Diablo raised an eyebrow. "Yes, that sounds like Belial. I assume you know her then."

"Obviously I know her!"

Nanana sighed in recognition. '_Well that explains a lot. Must be best friends._'

Diablo folded his arms thoughtfully. '_So she thought I was a god because of that power?_'

'_Evidently._'

Aqua put a hand on her chin for several lengthy seconds before a switch seemed to flip. "If I become a Demon Lord will I get my powers back!?"

Wiz answered, "Probably not. Even as Demon Lords, Hild and Frey's most powerful abilities are sealed just like a normal god's Arcanum."

"DAMMIT!"

Nanana furrowed her brow in thought. '_Wait, does that mean yours are too?_'

Diablo just shrugged. '_I can't say. I haven't had any reason to try and use anything that powerful. Why?_'

'_Well, if we _do _encounter anything really tough, it'll be a problem if all your aces are locked up._'

'_I highly doubt we wi –_'

'_Grima._'

Diablo began sweating slightly. '_… I'll test it out later._'

'_Good. Maybe Gorgon will help? She seems strong enough to slap you around a little._'

He nodded subtly. '_I'll see when I go to collect more ore._'

'_Right._'

Shera stared at the two, her cheeks puffed in a pout.

* * *

Later in the day, Diablo made his way out of the shop, Shera approaching him.

"Where are you going?"

"I will check on the ore. The rest of you gather the ingredients for the potions."

"Right," Rem answered with a nod, Shera's ears drooping somewhat.

"Oh, wait, I wanna come with!" Nanana declared, catching up to him as he left.

* * *

Outside the city, Diablo finally glanced at Nanana, curious. "And you're coming with me, why?"

"I wanna see how it goes when you talk to Gorgon," she answered playfully.

"Ah. You just want to be around in case she sends me through a wall."

She smiled to him. "You know me so well."

He just sighed before sending a wry smile of his own. "Well I suppose it's better than going alone."

She pouted in response. "You guess?"

"And I can't think of anyone better to go with than you, Tabula."

She smiled softly before adding, "You really should let the others see this side of you, Momo."

"Maybe one day, but not for a long time."

Her smile soured somewhat. "So you're really going to keep up this persona?"

"We're here," he answered, ignoring her question as he walked up to the cave. "Now let's go see what they've gathered."

Nanana just sighed as she followed him in.

* * *

Inside the main hall of the cave, Gorgon sat curled up, whipping her tail around gently as a baby, tiger-like monster played with it.

"Gorgon, are you here?" Diablo announced as they walked in.

Gorgon reared up on part of her tail as they approached. "Ah, I was wondering when you'd come back. And I see you brought your lover with you."

Diablo and Nanana both turned slightly red before looking at opposing walls. Coughing into his hand, Diablo redirected the conversation, "A – Anyway, how goes the mining?"

"Have you brought any Magic Stones with you?"

Diablo nodded and pulled a handful of large purple gems from his Inventory. "Yes, I brought a few.

Gorgon stretched out her hand as he dropped them to her. "Good to see Milim's father is a man of his word." Putting the Stones aside in a small cubbyhole, she turned back to the two. "As for the mining, it is proceeding smoothly, however, we have happened upon something unusual."

"Oh…?" Diablo asked, concerned what she was about to show him.

She extended her tail around a corner and picked up several pieces of a purplish black, metallic ore. "This. I do not know what it is myself, but since it is neither edible nor stone, I figured I would save it for you to identify. There are also other ores we have found, but this one was the most unusual."

Diablo and Nanana stared at the metallic object in shock.

"That's Ebony ore…" Nanana stated slowly in realization.

"Then I take it this has value to you?" she asked as she dropped the ore into Diablo's hands.

Nodding, he explained, "Yes, it makes for the most durable weapons and armor."

"I see…"

"Save any of it you find, I will provide extra Magic Stones in return."

"Understood. Anything else you wish of me?"

Diablo shook his head in response. "No, that is all."

'_Really?_' Nanana urged.

After a moment, Gorgon offered, "Would you and your love like to spend the night here? Rakala is away on an errand for me and her den is open for use."

Diablo stared at her silently before moment.

"Is something the matter?" She asked curiously, tilted her head.

"There is something you may be able to help me with."

"Oh?" Gorgon returned, folding her arms under her impressive bust.

Diablo did his best to stay focused, gulping. "I would like to test some of my powers."

"I see. On… who?"

* * *

**Fin! There you have it, the fifth chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed it. Be sure to let me know with a review if you did. If you were confused, unsure, or simply have questions on anything, such as where certain characters are from, leave your queries as a review and I will do what I can to address them in the next reviewer response. If you did not enjoy the chapter, review if you must, but suggestions on what you think might improve it would be more appreciated than simple roasting. That aside, no more waffling, until next time, bye-bye!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter VI**

**Greetings and salutations my beautiful people! ... Yes, I stole that. Ahem, moving on. I have returned with more Demon Lord's Adventurers, hopefully I have not kept you waiting too long. It seems at least some of you enjoyed the previous chapter, which is always nice. I hope for the same, or better, outcome for this chapter as well. That said, I need to give Bakuto Masaki my thanks as usual, though I admittedly have fallen off in terms of actually doing that. So, I will stop waffling and get to the reviewer responses, okay? Okay.**

**Meow: And you found it.**

**N2: Thanks. I try to keep the banter on a certain level, though admittedly sometimes it slips.**

**World of Dan: I haven't ruled out the possibility, but if I did it would be with a different protagonist, not an OC. But I wouldn't hold my breath on the possibility.**

**NotScott: So, does this count as biscuit worthy?**

**Yes.**

**I agree, Freya is a babe.**

**DreamWeaverGod: That's generally what I aim for, though I don't always succeed, I am only human after all. As wrong as it sounded, it is one hundred percent accurate.**

**Skull Flame: Cool. I may include more, but no promises.**

**It's not exactly an aspect of canon, but I thought it would be an amusing gag.**

**Understandable.**

**Join the exclusive club of the most of us.**

**You did. He is not related to her, it's just that someone he is related to is close to her.**

**superpierce: Because she has spent hundreds, if not thousands, of years watching over a single section of a single planet, sending those from there who die to their next destination. Plus she's lazy and likely doesn't do much reading outside of comics. Later in the series, I believe, it's explained, or maybe just hinted, that an amount of mana equal to thousands of souls being consumed will also suffice, though that may only be due to Rimuru's unique... everything.**

**Zaraki6: Just about all of his Skills are maxed out, the hurdle is learning how to use them without the benefit of a GUI. And he may do some, or all, of that.**

**I can't quite reveal that yet, as it's plot important. But he won't waste it, I promise.**

**ObsidianUnknown66: Me too. I enjoy going over the nitty gritties of things like that. She's trying to get in Diablo's good graces, so acting out like that wouldn't help.**

**freeforall546: Perhaps. And perhaps in more ways than one. :)**

**correnhimself316: I can promise you plenty of those.**

**Edwardanthony Aparecio: I'm sorry you feel that way, but I hope you find other stories that meet your liking.**

**Kian Xki: Yeah, she knows with pretty good certainty it was just him under a different name, even if she doesn't know why he did it.**

**How so? Ainz did the same thing in canon. He chose that name specifically so, if any other members of the guild were on that planet, they would seek him out. Same thing here. Just without Diablo being a malevolent cockbag.**

**There's a later narrative reason for him to have given that potion.**

**Partly because I like big harems, and because if I _did_ restrict myself to a small number of characters that were more manageable, I'd get lots of people bitching up a hurricane that I didn't include this girl or that girl in the story.**

**Thanks. I will admit combat is one area I still struggle writing to a degree.**

**I appreciate the encouragement, I certainly hope my stories keep improving.**

**If you can't guess the reason for her weakness just yet, I'll leave it for later to be revealed, since it is a plot-relevant detail.**

**You're just about spot-on for the whole gods thing.**

**As for the toads, it actually isn't their blunt resistance for why Aqua couldn't damage the toads, but rather them being immune to water based attacks. And due to her nature, every single attack of hers, even physical ones, have the water attribute.**

**Phew! That was a lot to get through! Though I do not mind at all. I love seeing all the responses from people, well, most of them. I also appreciate the constructive criticism rather than the bog-standard "it's shit" a lot of people spout, in varying levels of verbosity. That said, enough of my incessant jabbering, on with the show!**

* * *

Diablo stared up at Gorgon quietly for a few moments. "There is something you may be able to help me with."

"Oh?" Gorgon returned, folding her arms under her impressive bust.

Diablo did his best to stay focused, gulping. "I would like to test some of my powers."

"I see. On… who?"

"Someone powerful. Preferably someone with the power and durability to withstand some of my more intense abilities."

"I see… Honestly, the only one I can trust to be able to survive attacks of that magnitude is myself. One death among them is more than enough for me."

"R – Right…" Diablo answered somewhat shakily.

"Now, let us begin."

Nodding, Diablo followed Gorgon to the entrance of the cave and out into the large field nearby.

Folding her arms under her bust curiously, Gorgon asked, "So, what kind of attacks are you planning on testing?"

"My main goal is to ascertain my level of magical prowess."

"You don't know it?"

"I was brought here by force, and I have since learned that deities in this world have many of their stronger abilities kept from them. I wish to see the limit of what I am able to do."

"I see," she answered with a nod. "Very well." She then raised both of her hands and a large dome of energy appeared around her.

Diablo stared at it slightly, his expression remaining unchanged. '_So, uh… what's the significance of that?_'

"Hey, what is that thing?" Nanana asked suddenly.

"A barrier made of highly condensed mana," Gorgon explained. "It is capable of withstanding magical attacks up to Seventh Tier magic, which is the highest tier obtainable by any living being. Anything higher requires the use of Arcanum."

Diablo remained silent for a moment. '_SHIT!_'

Nanana looked at him, confused and concerned. '_What's wrong?_'

'_I mostly have Eighth Tier and up!_'

Nanana stumbled where she stood, almost faceplanting. Managing to collect herself momentarily, she retorted, '_A – Ah… well start with the weaker stuff and let's see if you get roadblocked at anything higher._'

"Is something the matter?" Gorgon asked, taking note of the two's silence.

"No," Diablo answered frankly.

"I see. Then let us begin."

'_Now… which one to begin with…_' After a moment of thought, Diablo raised a hand towards Gorgon. "Freeze Lancer!" Moments later, numerous large magic circles appeared behind him that then fired huge spikes of ice that raced towards Gorgon, though ultimately shattered harmlessly against her barrier. '_Right… so Fourth Tier spells aren't a problem it seems. That's good. Now to go a little higher._'

"I hope that's not your best," Gorgon taunted.

"Of course not, I'm merely stretching. Starting with something weaker before building up to the powerful stuff."

"Good," she answered simply as she waited.

'_Now for something with a little extra power._' "Aqua Laser!" he called out before a single circle appeared in front of him and shot a powerful stream of water at intense pressures that slammed into Gorgon's shield, causing it to momentarily warp but not breaking it.

"I do believe I am clean already."

"Funny." '_So, even Sixth Tier isn't restricted. Now Seventh._' "Glacial Core!" Suddenly a large chunk of ice formed in the air before slamming into Gorgon's barrier and exploding into a massive tower of spikes.

"Chilly," Gorgon commented. "That one was actually quite good. Sixth Tier, if I had to guess."

"Seventh, actually."

"Oh… rather weak then…"

Diablo twitched an eyebrow as a blood vessel pulsed on his forehead. '_Alright… let's go straight to the top then._' Reaching a hand out, energy began swirling around him.

Gorgon watched curiously as light began collecting and forming in front of Diablo's palm before compressing and condensing down to barely the size of a snowflake. She watched as it slowly descended to the ground before something suddenly clicked in her mind.

Nanana seemed to know what was coming and ducked down near a large rock.

"White Nova!" Diablo called out as the small dot hit the ground and exploded violently, resulting in a massive blast of energy and light, bathing the entire area in blinding white.

After the smoke cleared, Diablo looked around at the massive crater left behind by the blast. "… Well Ninth Tier clearly still works…"

Gorgon, who floated back down gently, looked at him, perplexed. "… Ninth?"

"Yes. It doesn't have quite the destructive power of Tenth Tier or Super Tier magic, but it certainly has a kick."

She stared silently at him as her mind churned. "I was not aware magic was capable of going beyond the Eighth Tier."

"It most certainly does. It's just that such spells are nearly unobtainable to most. Anything beyond the Ninth causes severe devastation and changes to the world around it."

Looking at the crater behind her, Gorgon wondered aloud, "And this doesn't?"

"Regardless," Diablo remarked, stowing his staff, "it seems the majority of my abilities have not been limited."

"That is good."

"I have powers beyond that spell, but I would be concerned of testing anything stronger." Bowing slightly, he added, "I appreciate your assistance. I have ascertained what I needed."

"Good," Gorgon responded with a nod.

"I'll take my leave then."

Gorgon smiled and nodded. "Right, be sure to return if you need anything."

"I will do that," he answered before leaving with a bag filled with the ore.

* * *

Upon returning to the others, Diablo dropped a large bag of metal on the table in the center of the room. "Here's the new load along with a new metal to work with."

"New metal?" Rem asked curiously as she sipped some water.

Diablo proceeded to pull the one chunk of Ebony out of the bag, causing Rem to nearly choke on her drink.

Shera's ears wiggled with interest. "Ooooh… pretty…"

Diablo nodded in understanding. "Yeah, I know. Apparently there are ebony veins in that mine too. Best set up some defenses at the entrance to ensure no unwelcome guests go in."

"R – Right," Rem answered, still in disbelief.

Shera, seeing this, addressed the befuddled Pantherian. "Um… what's wrong, Rem?"

"I forgot you were this stupid. That's ebony, and it is one of the most sought-after metals around."

"Really?" Shera wondered.

"Yes! The fact that he just found it is unbelievable!"

"Apparently there is a large vein of it in that cave," Diablo reiterated.

Rem sighed in exasperation. "Right… so what are you going to do with this stuff? It's not enough for much more than a dagger."

Diablo hummed in thought as he looked at the chunk of ore. After a moment he put his hand over it. "Create Greater Item."

The girls watched curiously as the piece of metal began to glow brightly before reshaping itself into a new form. Their expressions all changed in different ways as the new form appeared in the light, a very skimpy, jet black, metal bikini.

"Wow…" Shera cooed at the outfit.

Rem stared flatly at the item, her ears lying flat.

After a moment of silence Nanana asked, "So, um… who gets this thing?"

"Ooh, can I try it?!" Shera asked excitedly.

Diablo looked at her silently for a moment before gulping. "Sure."

"Yay!" Shera exclaimed before taking the metal bikini and running off.

Nanana just stared at him. '_… Pervert._'

* * *

Coming out of the nearby closet wearing the bikini, which left very, very little to the imagination of her voluptuous body, Shera stepped towards Diablo with a smile. "Hey, hey, how does it look Diablo?"

"Beautiful…" Diablo mumbled unwittingly before blood began falling from his nose. '_Crap!_' he cursed as he slapped a hand over his nose.

Nanana sighed in disbelief. "Cool. Now we turned Shera in to a bikini model," Nanana deadpanned.

Shera looked at the purple-haired girl curiously. "Bikini? What's a bikini?"

"Similar to underwear, but worn when you go swimming," she explained.

"Oh…"

"That armor's useless," Rem criticized.

Shera pouted as she looked at the cat-eared girl. "Eehh? But Diablo made it, so it has to be amazing!"

Deciding to put the situation to rest, Diablo spoke up. "Rem, why don't you try punching Shera? As hard as you can."

Shera's ears dropped in disbelief. "E – Eh!?"

With an almost malicious grin, Rem raised her fists and took a swing at Shera. Her hand stopped sharply and abruptly as it hit Shera's stomach, or rather, hitting something impossibly hard, like a brick wall. A chill went up Rem's back as she trembled where she stood. "Gah! Ow!"

Shera, however, blinked in confusion.

Rem, her bruised knuckles pulsing in pain, looked at Diablo in bewilderment. "I hit her, so why am I the one who's hurt?!"

Nodding, Diablo explained, "Simple. It's a full body enchantment. It provides her entire body with the protection of ebony armor, but with the weight and size of undergarments."

Shera looked down at her barely clothed form with excitement. "This is amazing!"

Frowning in confusion, Rem flicked her hands, causing large, metal, clawed gauntlets to appear over her hands as she took a swipe at Shera, sparks flying off as her claws did nothing to the elf. "Not a scratch…" she grumbled as she stowed her gauntlets.

"You're amazing, Diablo!" Shera cheered extatically.

'_More like your luck is,_' Nanana chastised.

'_And people think that stat is useless,_' Diablo retorted proudly.

Nanana sighed and rolled her eyes.

Ignoring her, Diablo noted, "Now then, I'd best get to work making more while we advertise the armor as well."

Nanana noted, "Advertising means we need a mannequin or a model for them."

Diablo replied, "You did say we made Shera one."

Nanana gave him a deadpan expression. '_You really feel comfortable sticking her out in the open to model something like that for hundreds of people?_'

Diablo remained quiet for a few seconds. "… Let's get this on Aqua."

"E – Eh!?" Aqua shrieked in disbelief.

"Aw…" Shera pouted, not really understanding the situation.

Rem just watched the proceedings in confusion.

* * *

Shortly later, Aqua, now wearing the metal bikini, mildly irritated at the poor-fitting chest area, looked at Diablo. "You promise?"

Diablo nodded. "Of course, three thousand Vals."

Folding her arms, Aqua retorted, "Alright, fine. I'll be your model."

"Good."

"This is the only way she'll be useful," Nanana chided.

"Shut it!" the blue-haired goddess growled.

Nanana smiled smugly and argued, "Now, now," get to work.

"Tch… you'd better pay me!"

"I don't lie. We'll get the podium set up, you just stand on it and show off the armor."

* * *

Shortly after, the group stood outside of Wiz's shop with a small podium set up that Aqua quickly made her way on top of.

"This is humiliating for a goddess…"

"Just get on the podium," Diablo urged. Turning to Shera, he asked, "Got your bow ready?"

Shera looked at him, confused. "I can, why?"

"We need to demonstrate the armor's effectiveness."

"Oohh, okay," Shera remarked in understanding as she ran back inside.

"I'll get some snacks," Nanana interjected as she went into Wiz's shop.

* * *

Shortly after, Aqua stood on the podium, striking several poses, trying to ignore the stares of the people that had gathered to see.

Diablo twitched an eyebrow as he noticed the men in the audience staring at Aqua, practically drooling. "Ahem! The wearer is not for sale. Her armor is."

One of the women in the crowd spoke up, "Armor? That's lingerie!"

Darkness watched the events before her and pouted slightly. "Aqua up there… with all those lewd eyes on her… sh – she really shouldn't have to do it, it should be me getting all those beastly stares…"

Diablo merely tried to ignore the blonde as he addressed the woman in the crowd, "That is where you're wrong, ma'am. Shera?"

Nodding with a smile, Shera nocked an arrow and aimed at Aqua.

"Wh – What do you think you're…!?" Aqua gasped, as did several of the onlookers, before Shera released the arrow that hit Aqua in the back, snapped under its own force, and fell harmlessly to the ground without leaving a scratch on her.

"O – Oh my…" the woman wondered in disbelief.

Diablo then raised a hand at Aqua. "Fireball!" he shouted before a blast of fire shot out at the blue-haired girl and seemingly engulfed her in an explosion, only to die down seconds later, leaving her unscathed.

"Amazing…!" another woman gasped.

Rem looked around at the crowd curiously as they began stirring and murmuring. Looking to Diablo, she remarked, "It seems they really like them."

"Indeed," he noted plainly.

One of the men in the crowd timidly raised his hand. "I – I'll take one! F – For my wife!"

A third woman in the crowd quietly raised her hand as well.

Diablo smirked slightly at the response as more people requested their own. "That will be thirty thousand each, and it will take a day or two to make more. You can also wear it under normal clothes."

"It'll protect them?" a woman asked.

"Yes," Diablo replied with a nod. '_I think. Or maybe they'll just get torn to pieces. Oh well._'

Nanana just rolled her eyes. '_This isn't some ero-anime._'

'_So?_'

As the others raised their hands and called out for their own sets of armor, one person in the crowd stood silently, watching Diablo closely.

* * *

As the sun hung low in the sky, the air painted a dark orange, Diablo looked over the many coins left from the day, from all the people who bought the armor he had made. "They certainly sold fast."

"So much money!" Aqua, back in her normal clothes, cheered as she made to dive forward and grab it all.

Diablo, however, smacked her hand away forcefully. "Wait until I divide it up."

Aqua pouted as he began dividing up the Vals into even amounts and placing them in small sacks, handing each one to one of the girls. "But my pay…"

"You will get your equal share plus the three thousand I promised," Diablo reiterated before handing her a bag of coins.

Aqua took it and looked at the bag curiously before looking at the man himself.

"What?" he asked, confused and slightly annoyed at her vexation.

"N – Nothing."

"Right… now to finish dividing the rest."

* * *

"You're going to mine again?" Rem asked the next morning as Diablo prepared to leave.

"I am. We need more ore, not only for the armor but for potions as well. I also need a few other items as well."

"Ooh, ooh, can I go this time!?" Shera asked excitedly.

Raising an eyebrow, Diablo replied, "Okay, I don't mind. But why would you want to go to the mine with me?"

"Yay!" Shera cheered as she ran up to him and grabbed his arm.

Rem and Megumin stared at her silently as Diablo's arm disappeared into her cleavage.

* * *

After finishing breakfast and leaving the city, the two made their way to the mine, Shera humming happily the whole way.

"So, you didn't say why you wanted to go with me," Diablo noted, breaking the silence.

Shera smiled softly before looking down bashfully. "I just… wanted to spend time with you."

Diablo raised an eyebrow curiously but just shrugged. "So be it."

As the two continued walking, Shera turned to Diablo curiously. "Hey, Diablo, can I ask you something…?"

"Of course."

"What's your world like?"

"… Much different to yours. The buildings there are made of metal and glass, instead of rock and wood. They reach up into the clouds, beyond the mountains."

"Whoa…"

"It's also inhabited by only humans, no Pantherians, elves, Grasswalkers, or beyond."

Shera looked at him quietly for a moment. "You're not a human though, are you?"

'_Crap,_' he cursed in his head. "I – I don't consider myself to be with them, they are not my people."

"Oh… Are there monsters?"

"N –" he began to say, stopping himself short. "… Yes. Terrible ones. Massive creatures that hunt and eat the people. The humans call them Novas."

Shera stared at him in surprise. "Is there anyone who can fight them?"

Diablo nodded in return. "There are a select few humans with the power to fight them, called Pandoras. They are all female."

"Do you help them?"

"… In my own way. I have concerns of my own."

"I see…" Shera remarked quietly in worry.

Diablo winced at seeing her downcast expression. '_Crap… does she think I don't care…_' "W – Well, it's not like I don't try to help them. After all, an empire is nothing without subjects. I can't have those things killing all my people."

"What do they look like?" Shera asked, seemingly engaged in the conversation again.

Sighing subtly in relief, Diablo answered, "They have various appearances. But most look like giant, mutated women."

Shera seemed to pick up on something in his words and asked uneasily, "… Are they that scary to fight…?"

Diablo remained silent for a moment with mild surprise before nodding slowly. "… Yes. Even for me."

Shera's ears drooped as her expression fell to the ground, walking silently next to Diablo for several minutes. Eventually, she spoke up again, timidly. "I see… Do you… want to stay in our world then…?"

His brain completely stopped for several long moments at her question as he pawed over it. '_… I… never really thought about that… I just assumed that… I'd always find a way back…_'

Before their discussion could continue, they were interrupted by Gorgon as they approached the cave. "Back again so soon?"

"Huh?" Diablo mumbled, coming back to attention. "Er, yes. I am."

"Back for more ore, I'm assuming?"

"That's correct. Plus Shera wanted to see some of your friends working."

"It's fine, you can call them Monsters. It won't offend me or them."

Diablo nodded quietly.

"This way," Gorgon urged before entering the cave.

Shera cooed with excitement as she saw the various types of Monsters, Harpies, Wyverns, Needlerabbits, and more all digging and clawing at the ground for chunks of metal and gemstones.

However, Diablo took note of the Harpies having trouble using their clawed feet to dig. "Why are the Harpies in here instead of outside?"

"It would draw too much attention to us," Gorgon argued.

"With all the thick tree cover outside?" Sighing, Diablo nodded to himself. "This is good, actually. I was thinking of finding a way to keep some form of security on the mine to ensure no one else came here and caused problems. So, I would like the flying… Monsters… to be outside as sentinels. If they see anyone they are to return and inform you and the others immediately."

Gorgon folded her arms in thought for several moments before nodding. "Very well. I can abide by that." She suddenly turned to several of the monsters and let out multiple guttural growls and hisses before several bat-like creatures and Harpies dashed out of the cavern.

Diablo nodded in appreciation before one of the Killer Ants approached the group and dropped a large variety of multi-colored rocks and gems.

Shera looked over the items with enthusiasm. "Oooohh… so pretty…"

Diablo just stared in disbelief. '_How many types of ore are in this cave?! It's like a gear farmer's wet dream!_'

"Diablo?" Shera questioned, pulling him out of his stupor.

"Y – Yes?"

"Are you okay? You're drooling?"

"Perfectly," he commented, wiping his chin.

"Right…"

"Let's return with what we have. Thank you, Gorgon."

The snake-tailed woman responded with a bow as Diablo and Shera gathered up the materials.

* * *

Aqua looked at the pile of ores and gems with an almost lustful excitement. "At this rate, we'll be rich!"

"Y – Yeah…" Megumin commented in disbelief.

Diablo just smiled quietly as he watched the girls. Though Nanana got his attention.

'_Not that I'm too worried, but don't you think we should try and keep our skills sharp and not just rest on our laurels with this potion stuff?_'

Diablo frowned slightly in thought. "… For the time being, our supply of coin is satisfactory. However, your strength leaves much to be desired."

Shera just tilted her head curiously as she looked at him. "Okay…?"

"It is time to take on more quests. As usual, I will be following as back up, but will not be actively participating."

Rem nodded in agreement. "Right."

"I assume you can handle selling the potions, Wiz?"

"Y – Yes!" she answered hurriedly, put on the spot.

Diablo nodded in acceptance. "Good. Let's head out."

* * *

Shera hummed musically as the group walked to the Guild Building.

Aqua, confused and mildly annoyed, questioned, "Why are you so happy…?"

"It's another mission with everyone!" she cheered.

Nanana just chuckled lightly as she watched the girls.

"We still need to decide what to take though," Megumin urged.

Once they got inside and looked around, Darkness saw a posting that caught her attention and pointed to it. "Ooh, this one!"

Diablo looked the mission over, requesting a party to deal with a cave filled with Orcs, and proceeded to smack Darkness on the head. "No."

"Aw…"

Rem pointed to a different posting in thought. "How about this one? A lake is infested with Killer Alligators due to the water becoming polluted."

Diablo nodded in approval. "Sounds good. I presume the water goddess will make herself useful."

"Of course!" Aqua retorted confidently.

"This I've _got_ to see," Nanana commented in amusement before thinking for a moment and smirking. "No wait, this is something I have _got _to help you with."

Aqua just looked at her in confusion. "Huh? What do you mean? Purifying a lake will be easy!"

Nanana nodded in response. "I know. But I have the perfect idea that will let you do it even easier and 'one hundred percent safe'."

Aqua blinked in curiousity. "Really? Let's do it!"

* * *

Aqua sat quietly in a large steel cage suspended by a rope over the deep brown lake.

Diablo trembled where he stood, attempting to maintain his façade. '_… Don't laugh, don't laugh, don't laugh…_'

Nanana, grinning cruelly, chided, "How's it hangin' Aqua?"

Megumin stumbled where she stood, holding a hand over her mouth to hold in her laughter.

"You're all evil…" Aqua hissed coldly.

"Darkness, dunk her," Nanana commanded.

"I wish it was me in there," the blonde pouted before letting go of the rope, resulting in a hefty splash as the cage hit the water and ground just beneath it.

"Hey! That hurt dammit!" Aqua cursed. "Stop it!"

Nanana put up a hand commandingly. "Nope! Now get to work, gator chow!"

"Bitch!"

"So? Unless you want to become a walking prune, I recommend you start purifying, o great water goddess."

Aqua just hissed and began clearing the lake. "… Tch… Purification… Purification… Purification…"

After a few more repetitions, Nanana asked, "So how long do you think it'll take?"

Aqua just ignored her and kept chanting.

Diablo looked at the water next to the cage as it began bubbling. "In about three. Two. One."

Moments later, a pair of scaly, purple eyes popped up from the murky water.

Aqua's chanting stopped as she took note of the creature, seeing its massive shape shadowed in the water. "… Eh?"

Less than a moment later the beast charged forward, revealing its three meter, scaled body as it charged and rammed the cage.

Aqua shrieked in horror as Diablo watched silently. Nanana then ordered, "Get to work faster, gator chow!"

"Eeeekk!" Aqua shrieked as a second Killer Gator emerged and began slamming into another side of the cage.

Nanana just watched as she laughed almost maniacally.

"Sh – Shouldn't we do something?" Shera asked as she looked to Diablo, who just stood next to her sighing.

Nanana just turned to her with a smirk, "Yeah. We need to make popcorn."

One of the gators charged and grabbed onto a bar of the cage and pulled, bending and straining the metal.

Sighing to himself, Diablo started talking to himself. "Monsters that large tend to be weak in their eyes."

Shera pulled her bow from her back and readied an arrow, quickly releasing it, nailing one of the massive reptiles right in its eyes with only one shot.

The monster released the bar of the cage and lurched back in pain.

"Rem, if they start coming towards us, aim for their muzzles," Diablo ordered before Rem equipped her gauntlets with a flick.

"Right," the Pantherian replied, Nanana and the others staring at Diablo silently.

"What about me…?" Megumin asked nervously.

Diablo answered coldly, "Your magic is too destructive and your body too weak to be of any use."

"Geh…" she lurched, almost physically pained from his words.

Darkness, with a flushed, excited smile, asked anxiously, "A – And me…?"

Diablo retorted bluntly, "I'm not going to risk you getting yourself killed for a thrill."

Nanana stared at him flatly as Darkness silently looked at the man in shock.

Seeing they didn't like, or didn't expect, his response, Diablo added, "A – Ahem, I mean, after all, you wouldn't be any use to me dead."

Darkness' eyes widened in anticipation. "So you wish for me to give my body to you right now?!"

"No!" he snapped.

"Aw… but my body is fertile…" Darkness pouted.

Diablo just stared at her, hoping she simply was not aware of what she was saying.

"Or… am I ugly…?"

Diablo, blushing furiously and growing increasingly uncomfortable finally snapped back, "No! Now I'm trying to focus so shut up!"

Darkness just hung her head as she pouted.

'_Dammit, why are women so complicated…?_'

Nanana shot back, '_We aren't. You're just stupid._'

'_That may be true, but that one certainly is a pile of snakes!_'

Nanana just shrugged. '_She is probably some noble's daughter that wants to choose her own husband, and decided on it being her new god._'

'_That's absurd,_' Diablo huffed.

Nanana looked to the blonde and brought her into the argument. "Hey Darkness, what's your family like?"

Darkness looked at her curiously before her brain seemed to jump to the usual insanity. "Huh? Why, do you plan on ransoming me to them?! Doing unspeakable things until they pay you?!"

Nanana just smirked playfully. "Maaaybe? If you don't tell me what your family's like, I'll get Diablo to whip you."

'_The hell you will!_' Diablo snarled in his mind to her.

"Really!?" Darkness shouted energetically.

"Why does that excite you?!"

Nanana's smirk widened mischievously. "Or maybe I should have him lock you in a basement and turn you into his personal broodmare?"

The blonde began drooling in response. "Shall I strip down now!?"

Diablo just stared in disbelief before the group were distracted when they heard Aqua shouting desperately as the Gators kept clawing at the cage.

"PURIFICATION, PURIFICATION, PURIFICATION!"

Diablo looked at her as the Gators kept pulling at the cage, the blue-haired girl trying to work faster.

* * *

Aqua, panting and exhausted, sat in the heavily battered cage, the lake around her perfectly clear and the monsters gone.

Diablo nodded in affirmation to her work. "Four hours. Good work."

Aqua looked up desperately, wiped. "… Is it… Is it over…?"

"Yes, you did good girl."

"Right…" she mumbled, slumping against one side of the cage.

Diablo then reached behind his back before pulling out a large bottle of wine and tossing it through the bars at Aqua, whose lethargy vanished instantly as she leapt up and caught it in midair. "Let's head back," he urged, the girls all agreeing.

* * *

Diablo walked next to the cart holding the cage as they approached back to Faltra. Twitching an eyebrow, he looked at Aqua, who still remained sitting in the box. "There's no reason for you to stay in there."

"It's safe in here though…" Aqua mumbled quietly.

He sighed heavily before shrugging. "Fine. But once we return it you need to come out."

"Okay…" she answered despondently.

"We rented it, not bought it," he shot back.

She remained silent for a moment before looking at him. "… Can we buy it?"

"You will not be living in the cage you halfwit."

"… But –"

"The answer is no," Diablo snapped back. "If you keep arguing, I'll pull you out of it immediately."

"Okay…"

Diablo nodded with a small smile. "Good. Now let's get this cashed in and return the cage."

Shera raised a fist in the air with excitement, almost causing her twins to fall out. "Yahoo!"

Rem and Megumin stared at her with silent anger.

'_Incoming idiot,_' Nanana warned Diablo.

'_Where?_' he asked.

"Halt!" a new voice howled.

'_Oh._'

"I said halt!" the same voice hollered.

"Did someone say something?" Diablo said plainly before a man approached the group and swung a massive sword, severing the chain connecting the cart to Darkness.

"Hey!" the blonde shouted as the sudden release caused her to hit the ground.

"Just wait, Lady Aqua!" the man called out.

"Lady?" Nanana and Diablo asked in confusion before getting a better look at the man. He was tall and plain looking, with elaborate purple armor and short brown hair, the most striking aspect about him being the massive, dark red sword he wielded which, rather than ending in a sharp point, ended in a flat blade like the head of an ax.

The man, without addressing Diablo or the others, stowed his blade and then grabbed two of the bars to the cage and nearly ripped them off the box.

Aqua, seeing this, finally came out of her stupor, enraged. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

The man, smiling proudly, explained, "I'm freeing you Lady – bagh!" he grunted as Aqua nailed him in the gut with a punch, knocking him back and folding him over like a lawn chair.

"Do you have any idea how much money that is going to cost us!?"

"B – But… you were…" he stammered weakly as he stood up, surprised and aching.

"S – Sir Kyouya!" two pretty girls exclaimed as they came out from a nearby alley.

"Now that will come out of my pay!" Aqua continued shouting at the man.

"Lady Aqua, what is going on?" the brown-haired man stammered in bewilderment.

Aqua just stared at the man in annoyance. "You keep calling me that, who the hell are you?!"

Kyouya's face trembled in confusion. "H – Huh…? But, Milady, it is I, your chosen hero, Kyouya Mitsurugi."

Aqua just obstinately folded her arms with a huff. "Don't remember."

Kyouya proceeded to brandish the massive sword on his back proudly. "You sent me to this world with the Demon Sword, Gram, and instructed me to slay the Demon King."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow and looked at Aqua, irritated. "_You _stole my sword!?"

Kyouya glared at the horned man. "Your sword? This sword was gifted to me by the great goddess Aqua for my quest!"

"And she stole it from my armory!"

Kyouya aimed Gram at Diablo angrily. "Liar! And besides that, you had Lady Aqua in a cage like some animal!"

Diablo just folded his arms. "We had a job and this cage kept my subordinate safe."

Kyouya scowled indignantly at the cloaked man. "Subordinate?! Lady Aqua is a goddess you worthless –!"

Aqua finally let her temper get the best of her and swung a fist at the sword-wielding fanatic, sending him flying.

Nanana blinked in surprise. "Huh. Well that happened."

Kyouya, undeterred from being launched in a vegetable stall, stood up and directed his rage at Diablo rather than the woman who sent him there. "What have you done to her, you bastard?!"

"Nothing, fool," Diablo retorted bluntly.

"Liar!" Kyouya shouted back, predictably.

Megumin just stared at him in disbelief. "… He did _not_ just call a god a liar…"

Diablo frowned slightly at her remark before Kyouya's stupidity regained his attention. "The image of Lady Aqua is seared into my brain, I know you did something to her you vagabond!"

"Again, I didn't do anything, moron," Diablo repeated, realizing that he would only be ignored.

Readying his sword, Kyouya primed himself to charge Diablo. "I won't allow a bastard like you to just throw her in a cage!"

Diablo just sighed. '_This idiot isn't even listening to a word I say._'

Darkness just stared silently at Kyouya, her hands twitching angrily. "… I want to kill him."

Megumin gripped her staff tightly, trembling. "Yeah… I really want to set off an Explosion in his face."

Diablo, his patience with the man running its limit, sternly shot him down. "Now listen carefully you moronic mortal. You will give back what Aqua stole and leave, or I will beat your ass down and then take my sword back and blacklist you from the Guild."

Kyouya lurched back before seeming to find some level of confidence momentarily. "M – More lies!" His eyes then darted behind Diablo where he saw Rem and Shera, or more accurately, their collars. "You bastard, you even have slaves with you?!"

Diablo twitched an eyebrow as his patience finally lapsed.

"Draw your blade! I will fight you for their free –" Kyouya began to rant before receiving a powerful blow to the face from Diablo's fist, sending him crashing through a wall.

Diablo just sighed in exasperation. "You've become too annoying." He then picked up the massive sword Kyouya had dropped and slung it over his shoulder.

"Wh – What!?" one of the girls in Kyouya's party gasped.

The other spoke up and shouted, "Only Master Kyouya should be able to use Gram!"

Diablo just huffed dismissively. "He's barely qualified to wield my sword."

Kyouya came to weakly and stood up with a growl.

"Uwah!" Aqua suddenly shouted.

"Aqua?" Diablo questioned, worried slightly.

Pointing at Kyouya, Aqua exclaimed, "I remember now! You're the loser who got hit by a tractor!"

Kyouya winced in despair before slumping onto the pile of rubble he inadvertently made.

Diablo just sighed, ignoring him, before looking at the cage. "Now to get this cage fixed and returned."

"N – Not so fast!" Kyouya interjected, trying to distract himself from his shame.

Diablo just ignored him as he grabbed the chain to the cart and pulled it.

"I said –!" Kyouya shouted before Darkness suddenly bitchslapped him and sent him further into the wall.

"Stop demanding things of our god, trash!" Darkness suddenly, and unexpectedly, exclaimed.

Megumin and Aqua both gasped in shock before Nanana remarked, "Huh. He actually pissed off Darkness."

Diablo stared at the blonde, almost in shock. "… Let's go."

The two girls with Kyouya just watched the group silently before running over to him.

* * *

Back near the inn, Diablo and the others stood just outside with the cage.

"How do we fix it…?" Shera wondered nervously.

"Magic," Diablo answered without even thinking.

She looked at him in disbelief. "Magic can do that?!"

Diablo merely nodded as he looked over it. "It can do many things." He continued examining it for several seconds. '_I say that, but I don't know of a spell that can simply repair this thing…_'

Nanana furrowed her brow in thought.

Diablo did the same in consideration. '_If I remember right… most of the spells in the game, their flavor text talked about things like how Fireball ignites the oxygen in the air, or how Blizzard slows down the molecules of everything around the user. So… maybe it'll work the same._' After a moment Diablo put his hand on the cage and focused. '_Okay… I need to imagine the molecules of the steel rearranging themselves back into their original shape…_'

Shera watched the cage in thought before it began glowing and twitching. It suddenly jumped and the broken bars stitched themselves together. "Amazing!"

Diablo looked at the repaired cage in surprise. '_Huh. It actually worked._'

Rem stared silently at Diablo for a few moments.

"Rem?" he questioned.

"… Can magic work on physical anatomy…?"

"… Maybe?" '_The hell…?_'

'_No idea…_' Nanana mumbled silently in her mind to him.

"Ah…" Rem just mumbled in defeat.

"Why?" Nanana questioned.

"To shrink Boob Elf's."

Diablo just stared as he connected the dots.

Shera however, looked at Rem very confused. "… Why? Diablo likes them."

Rem's left ear began twitching violently.

Diablo saw a spark beginning to light and decided it best to intervene. "… Let's just get this returned."

* * *

Aqua drooled over the pile of reward money they received from the job. "So much money…"

"You sure you're not a goddess of greed?" Diablo chided coldly.

"I am not!" Aqua snapped back almost instantly.

Nanana responded by pulling a large gold bracelet with jewels on it.

Aqua instantly switched gears and drooled over the bracelet. "Ooh, what's that?!"

"Bait," Nanana answered bluntly.

"Gimme!"

"Nope. Not giving it to you, Greed Goddess."

"I'm not a greed goddess!" Aqua weakly argued as she pawed at it. "Now give it!"

"Then why do you want the jewelry so badly?"

"More money means more booze!"

"So you're a goddess of gluttony?"

"No, a goddess of water!"

"Riiight…"

"Give it to me dammit!"

"Nope," Nanana retorted coldly.

Aqua just pouted angrily.

"Just admit you're a goddess of gluttony and you get it."

"I'm not!"

Nanana proceeded to slip the bracelet on her wrist with a smile. "Then this is mine."

Aqua just stared as her eyes began welling up.

Diablo sighed before looking at the purple-haired girl. "You truly enjoy tormenting her, don't you?"

"She took away my afterlife of pudding and video games, I will never forgive her!"

After a few silent seconds, Diablo sighed once more before talking to Nanana privately as something caught his attention. '_… Hey, Nanana?_'

'_Yes, Momo?_'

Glancing at the bracelet on her hand, he added, '_That bracelet. It's one of the items you made in Nazarick._'

She just shrugged slightly. '_… In a way… Why?_'

That seemed to confuse the man even more. '_How do you have it?_'

'_It was one of my Treasures I managed to keep on me in death._'

'_Ah. Wait, what?_' he responded as one question was answered, only for many more to take its place.

'_One of my Treasures,_' she repeated.

'_Yeah, I heard that, but how'd you manage to bring it with you?_'

'_It was on me, duh._'

'_How? You weren't brought into this world as your character like me._'

She could only tilt her head, trying to grasp where his confusion was coming from. '_Your point?_'

'_How did you bring something from the game with you?_'

She folded her arms in thought, trying to comprehend his bewilderment, before something seemed to click. '_Oh, I see. You've got it backwards. I based the Item on this thing._'

The proverbial gears of Diablo's mind ground to a sudden and frozen halt. '_… What?_'

'_What? The one in the game is based on the real one I own. Actually, all the items I've made are._'

His locked gears were now rusted in place. '_… Hah?_'

Shrugging, Nanana continued, '_Heck, even the Staff is based on one of my Treasures. The Staff of the Seven Chaos Gods._'

Diablo's brain just about caught fire at that revelation. '_… Hah?!_'

'_What?_' Nanana retorted, nonplussed about the whole situation.

"Diablo?" Shera asked, as even she noticed the vacant expression on his face.

Snapping himself back to reality, Diablo coughed into his hand and tried to hide it. "A – Ahem, it is nothing."

Nanana smirked playfully. '_Wow, you really spaced out there. Didn't I tell you?_'

'_No you fucking didn't!_'

"What do we do now?" Shera asked, confused.

Raising a hand, Rem suggested, "I have an idea. Head to Orario?"

Frowning slightly, Nanana looked over her outfit. "Well before that, I'd like to get some proper clothes."

Shera swiftly held up Diablo's bikini armor.

"Not that! I mean, maybe under it, but not just that!" she stammered.

"Oh…" the elf remarked, disappointed.

Nanana just groaned.

* * *

Later on, Diablo and the others made their way around the city, Diablo looking through the windows in many of the shops there.

"What are we looking for?" Shera questioned.

Looking at a few dresses inside a fancy boutique, Diablo explained blithely, "I need to get an idea on what types of clothing to make."

"Really?"

"I only made it that way because I had few materials."

"So?" Shera asked, perplexed by the answer.

"It is not how I plan to make them, going forward."

"Why not?"

Diablo stiffened as he was not anticipating such in-depth questioning.

"Because it's creepy," Rem answered instead, seemingly for him.

"Because you lack boobs?" Nanana jabbed coldly, earning a violent hiss from the Pantherian.

Diablo did his best to ignore their quibbling when a noise down a nearby alley caught his attention. Frowning in thought, he followed the sound and saw a portly man glowering at a young woman with long, dark blonde hair and bright green eyes wearing a red and white dress with an apron and black gloves, her frilled dress accentuating her curvy figure.

"Please, I'm begging you!" she pleaded with the man, who just folded his arms obstinately.

"Listen Miss Lilietta, if you can't make enough money to pay the rent, I'm just losing money letting you in this space. I'll have someone who'll actually pay me take over."

"B – But…!" she stammered before Diablo approached the scene.

"Is something wrong?" Diablo announced as he walked up to them.

The man winced slightly at the sight of the horned man but plainly answered him. "No, it's nothing. This girl here just won't pay her rent."

"It's not that I won't, I can't!" Lilietta desperately argued.

He merely huffed in derision. "Same difference. Whether you can't or won't, the end result is I'm not getting paid and you're still living here and keeping your crap on the shelves I own."

Diablo narrowed his eyes before turning his attention to the pretty girl in hot water. "… Do you need a job Miss?"

She stumbled over her words in response to his question, though the portly man interrupted. "You can give her a job if you want, but what I've got here is store space. So unless there's something inside that's making money, it doesn't do me any good."

Diablo stared at the man, rather annoyed, as Lilietta looked at him in worry. After a few seconds of thought, Diablo turned his attention to the concerned girl. "Hmm… what do you sell, human?"

Tensing at the question, she answered shyly, "U – Umm… tools… My grandmother used to make and sell tools here, and I tested them. But…" she trailed off somberly. "Grandma's not here anymore, and I'm no good with the forge…"

"… There is a forge there?"

"There is, so?" the man questioned.

"Aqua, go get changed," Diablo ordered.

The blue-haired woman raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Eh? Into what?"

"The outfit, dummy," Nanana chided.

"Which outfit?"

The portly man watched the exchange in growing aggravation before Nanana, irritated by Aqua's stupidity, acted or real, dragged her away from public view for a few moments.

Diablo and the man stared silently as grunting and struggling was heard around the corner.

Nanana came back around the corner, dragging Aqua, now clad in the ebony bikini armor.

The portly man let out a gasp that almost swallowed his tongue at the sight of her.

Taking the appropriate opportunity, Rem picked up a nearby stone and threw it, causing it to hit bounce off Aqua harmlessly.

The man's jaw nearly hit the floor in shock.

Seeing the expression he was hoping for, Diablo got his attention. "A forge would be helpful, so think we can set up business here?"

"Of course! I would love to have someone of your caliber on my property!"

"Good. Under two conditions under my end. The rent stays the same, and she remains the owner of the building."

The man was less than thrilled with that arrangement, but his avarice overpowered whatever reasons he had for such misgivings. "Fine."

"Good to hear."

"Hopefully you'll turn me an actual profit," the man rebuked snidely.

A small smirk on his face, Diablo hit back, "I am sure my Familia will do well."

His face went almost as white as paper. "… Wh – What?"

"Yes?"

"F – Familia…?"

"Yes Familia. I am a god after all."

Lilietta's eyes almost burst in shock. "Y – You are…?"

"That I am. Now, let's get everything finalized."

"R – Right," Lilietta stammered, the man smiling greedily as he made to fetch some documents.

* * *

After dealing with all the necessaries, Diablo sighed as he shook his hand in discomfort. '_Geez… it's like signing all the patents for the Cardinal System…_'

"I don't know if this place will serve a Familia well enough," Lilietta piped up nervously, "but you're welcome to anything you think you can use."

"Thank you," Diablo answered in as official a tone as he could muster.

Rem, meanwhile, looked around the shop inside curiously, examining nearly every nook and cranny.

"Looking for mice?" Shera teased as she walked up to the curious cat.

Turning to her with a hiss, Rem snapped, "No!"

"Then what are you looking for?"

"I'm just looking, stupid fatty."

Shera puffed her cheeks in anger, but before she could retaliate Diablo cut off their argument.

"Oy, enough fighting. I will not have members of my Familia be at each other's throats."

"Right…" Rem and Shera answered in agreement.

Diablo noticed Megumin staring at him silently but decided to let it go and turn his attention to Nanana, who had just finished surveying the building. "Well?"

"The place has this front area to sell items, a small kitchen, a forge, a large storage area, a small kiln, and five bedrooms."

"Right. It will do nicely then."

Lilietta sighed in immense relief.

"Now to get to work."

Lilietta nodded assuredly before gaping as he placed a large bag of ebony ore in front of everyone.

"Something wrong?" he asked, seeing her gob smacked expression.

"There's so much!" she exclaimed.

"Of course. We have a mine full of this and various other metals."

"E – Eh?! You have a mine!?" Lilietta continued shouting, as more and more surprises hit her.

"Yes. Along with a willing work force."

She could only stared intermittently at each of the group before Nanana put a hand on her shoulder. "There's a lot that's happened, so don't worry."

"R – Right…" she stuttered out weakly.

As the two continued talking, Megumin tugged on Diablo's cape, finally getting his attention. "Yes, Megumin?"

"I'm bored," the petite girl moaned. "Can we go practice my Explosion spell?"

Raising an eyebrow slightly, he questioned, "Hm? That's fine, but why do I need to be involved?"

Her face tinting almost as red as her eyes, she answered with embarrassment, "B – Because… I can't move after using it."

"Ah." After a moment of thought, he sighed and agreed. "Fine. I don't like being used as a horse, so at some point we need to get a transport for the task."

"Like what?" Nanana asked, overhearing the conversation.

Diablo put a hand on his chin to think, only to be interrupted as Shera shouted out, "A Filolial!"

"A what?" he asked, surprised by her sudden shout.

"We can buy a Filolial!" Shera yelled with excitement.

He blinked a few times in consideration before nodding in agreement. "Ah… but that would require a lot of money… and it would be best to get one as an egg…"

Rem interjected, "That's going to be difficult."

Diablo nodded in understanding. "I know. But the best things in life are never easy."

Shrugging, Rem added, "It would still be expensive to purchase a Filolial egg, but not as much as buying an adult."

"Then if anything we would have to find one."

"That would be even more difficult."

A small smirk crossed Diablo's lips as he replied, "That just means it'll be that much more fun."

* * *

**Voila! And like that another chapter closes. Wait, does it count as closing the chapter if it is an electronic book? I have confused myself now... Ahem! If you enjoyed the chapter, please do let me know with a review, I like being able to see what aspects people enjoy and what aspects they do not so much. If you were confused, unsure, or simply have questions on anything, such as the original source of certain characters, leave your queries as a review and I will do what I can to address them in the next reviewer response. If you did not enjoy the chapter, so be it, sorry you did not enjoy yourself. If you could be so kind as to provide suggestions for improvement instead of just telling me it is rubbish, it would be greatly appreciated, but I know some people have the general mental acuity of a deck chair.**

**Regardless, enough from me, until next time, bye-bye!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter VII**

**Greetings all! I am back with more Demon Lord's Adventurers. I know, I know, but it is what my muse is currently stuck on, so it is what I will be writing. Wait a little bit and I have little doubt it will change to something else. It does that from time to time. As per usual, many thanks to Bakuto Masaki for his endless help, and endless patience, in helping me with this. I hope everyone enjoyed the previous chapter, so far most of you seem to be enjoying it, which is very nice. Hopefully you all enjoy this chapter as well. So, time for the reviewer responses.**

**freeforall546: While I'm glad you enjoy my stories, I certainly hope it's not the only thing you have to look forward to amidst all this bullshit.**

**ObsidianUnknown66: Glad to hear it! Yeah, blending all the different worlds together is one of my favorite things to do with these stories, yet for some reason a lot of people seem to dislike that, which I find very odd. Indeed. Don't worry, Mordred will be appearing again soon.**

**Skull Flame: Sure thing.**

**Of course they are, Bikini Armor is a thing, after all.**

**Same.**

**Similar circumstances.**

**Indeed, hmm.**

**Thanos69: Puns. If you know anything about my stories at this point, you should know that if I _can_ use a female character in place of a male one, I almost invariably will. Not the next chapter, but soon.**

**Lawiegg: Well harem is what I specialize in, that and blending nearly a dozen disparate worlds into one, semicohesive mess of titties.**

**Nondus: Did the mention of Orario not tip you off that they will be appearing eventually? Give it time.**

**tempace: English dude, English.**

**gotSaws: It's what I do. Glad you're enjoying it.**

**15songoku: Nah, Krebskulm's involvement will be much like it was canon. As for Loli action, Lolis aren't my preference, so you're not going to see as many of them, but there will be some like Lilliruca, Filo, or Hestia (Even though she's technically an Oppai Loli, but still). And no, I don't consider Megumin a Loli, but a Pettanko.**

**Oh you can count on it.**

**Bell does not exist in this story. As for Ishtar, that one's complicated, but you'll see when we get to it.**

**Indeed. Though as for Raphtalia, she won't stay as a Loli for long.**

**I'll be updating the next couple chapters sooner than normal since I'm off work for the quarantine. So there's at least that to look forward to.**

**correnhimself316: There will be plenty more hijinks to come.**

**Enough prattle, on with the show!**

* * *

"That just means it'll be that much more fun," Diablo stated with a smirk as he and the others formulated ideas on obtaining a Filolial for Megumin to ride after testing her Explosion spells.

Sighing, Nanana spoke in her mind to him. '_Let's save that for later. You should just go help Megumin for now._'

Diablo's smirk disappeared almost instantly with a minute sigh. '_Fine._' "For now, let's go, Megumin."

The petite brunette nodded with enthusiasm.

"Good."

* * *

Very shortly, the duo made their way outside the city, Megumin scanning the area curiously. "Need somewhere good… Hmm… like a distinctive rock formation, or a big quarry."

After several minutes of walking, something caught Diablo's attention. Pointing to it, he offered, "How about a decrepit castle?"

"Huh?" Megumin mumbled before looking where he was pointing and saw a large castle overlooking the area, perched upon a cliffside that very clearly had not had any inhabitants for decades, perhaps centuries. Megumin's exposed eye lit up with sparkles. "Oh, perfect!"

Diablo moved to the side and leaned against a tree as Megumin readied her staff and began casting.

"Darkness blacker than black and darker than dark, I beseech thee, combine with my deep crimson. The time of awakening cometh. Justice, fallen upon the infallible boundary, appear now as an intangible distortion! I desire for my torrent of power, a destructive force: a destructive force without equal! Return all creation to cinders, and come from the abyss!" she called out as a large circle of magical energy appeared and fluctuated at her feet before she took one last deep breath and cried out as loud as she could, "Explooosion!"

All of the energy swirling at her feet immediately condensed into a brightly glowing ball at the tip of her wand before being launched like a missile. The small light vanished from view momentarily with distance before a massive ball of fire erupted from the castle, sending smoke and boiling stone in all directions, the pressure wave knocking down many of the trees close to the castle.

Diablo had to momentarily brace himself or risk being knocked off balance as the shock wave passed by him. He felt sweat drip down his cheek in disbelief as an entire chunk of the castle's guard wall had been virtually vaporized. '_It's like a goddamn nuke…_' "… You need to tone it down. I felt that one in my –" he began as he turned to Megumin, only to realize she was no longer there, glancing down to see her collapsed on the ground.

"This is… the best…" she weakly and gleefully mumbled.

He could only stare at her in disbelief. "… You really need a different spell."

"I refuse," she said almost instantly with conviction.

'_So resolute…_' "Then tone it down."

Able only to move her head, she glanced up at Diablo as he approached her. "What do you mean?"

"Try saying the chant in your head instead of out loud next time, and try to limit the amount of mana you pump into the spell instead of all of it. A controlled, limited Explosion is much more dangerous than just blowing your load in one go."

"But…" she pouted.

Thinking for a moment, he decided on a different tactic. "Imagine if you could cast one hundred small Explosions and hurt that many more enemies."

Megumin's eyes widened exponentially at the realization to what he said.

Smiling to himself at the progress, he picked her up off the ground and slung her over his shoulder.

"H – Hey! What are you doing!?"

"It's easier to carry you this way."

"I look like a bag of rice!"

"So? For the time being, we're heading back."

"Right…" she grumbled quietly as Diablo returned to the city, the girl still flung over his shoulder.

* * *

"Welcome back, Diablo!" Shera greeted like a puppy when Diablo and Megumin returned. "How was it?"

"She used too much power," Diablo answered plainly before flopping Megumin onto a nearby chair. "And now she's unable to move at all."

Shera stared at the girl curiously for several seconds as Diablo walked away. "She almost looks like a doll."

Nanana gained a mischievous smirk as she heard her and tapped the busty elf on the shoulder. "… Maybe you should dress her up like one then?"

Shera's ears perked up enthusiastically. "Ooh! Great idea!"

Megumin just stared into the void silently. "… Help…"

Snickering at her own conniving, Nanana then noticed Diablo nearby, deep in thought. "Something wrong, Momo?"

Looking up at her from his seat he only shook his head. "Just thinking about Shera and Rem's collars. Along with the asshole from the Mage Guild. Gallon I think his name was. Or Gullpit."

Nanana just shrugged in response. "Doesn't matter. They're slave collars, right?"

He nodded plainly. "Correct."

"Then if you want to learn about slave collars, the best place to go would be a slaver. They likely know the most about them."

Diablo flinched where he sat, feeling his skin crawl. "… Ah. I'd rather not deal with those types."

Nanana just shrugged her hands. "Well you know what they say. The people who know the most about something are the ones who use it the most."

"… Fine."

"We need to find one, first."

"Then we'll head for the Mage's Guild tomorrow."

Shera suddenly ran into the room excitedly. "Hey, hey! Come here for a minute!"

Diablo raised an eyebrow curiously. "Hmm? Something wrong?"

Shera pulled Diablo into the main room where he saw Megumin, still paralyzed from her lack of mana, now wearing a frilly, black and purple dress with an insect-like hat on her head. "Tahdah!"

Diablo stared silently for several moments, Nanana next to him trying to prevent herself from falling over in laughter. "… Cute…" he mumbled as he patted Shera on the head.

"… Kill… me…" Megumin begged.

"No."

The girl just sat silently.

* * *

"You sure you don't mind living so far away from your shop?" Wiz questioned as Lilietta moved her belongings into Wiz's shop.

Lilietta just nodded with a smile. "Yes. Lord Diablo and the others are mainly going to use it to make and store armor and sell it here. As long as I get to keep my grandmother's shop I'm happy."

Wiz just smiled with a nod. "That's good."

Diablo walked into the main room where the others were and looked at a few of them before motioning to the door. "Nanana, Shera, Rem, we're heading for the Mage's Guild. The rest keep an eye on the place."

"Yes, sir!" Lilietta responded with a smile and a salute.

* * *

Diablo and the girls quickly made their way to the Mage's Guild, a large, ornate building made of white material at the center of the city, walking up to the front desk where a short girl with horns and a bountiful body saw them approach.

Diablo stared at the young woman in thought. '_Hm… she must be one of the female Draphs. I didn't realize just how short they are…_' "I wish to see Celestine Baudelaire."

The girl tensed stiffly before nodding slowly. "U – Um, certainly, Sir Diablo," she stammered before getting from her seat and heading into the back of the building. Moments later the Draph returned, holding a small slip of paper in her hands. "M – My apologies, but Lady Celestina isn't here right now. She did leave this for you, though."

Diablo frowned slightly as he looked the document over.

"What is it?" Shera wondered.

"A job request. Take a basket of wine and fruit to the southern border gate for the guards stationed there. The reward is set for… twelve thousand Vals…"

Shera's eyes nearly popped out of her head. "That's a lot of money!"

"And very simple as well…" he noted suspiciously.

Rem sighed and noted, "She must be trying to pay us back for the trouble that jerk caused."

Nanana nodded firmly. "I'm not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth."

"Right," Diablo returned as he folded up the paper and put it in his pocket. "Let's get going then."

Rem shook her head in denial. "I refuse to accept Celes' pity. Not after everything she's already done for me. I'll stay here and help Lilietta and Wiz manage the shop."

"That's fine. Be sure and let them know we took this job. Nanana, Shera, let's go."

"Right!" Shera cheered with excitement.

* * *

"A quest?" Wiz asked, surprised. "It sounds almost too good to be true."

Rem merely shrugged in return. "Well this one's directly from Celes, so we know it's fine."

"But still…" Wiz mumbled in concern.

"Something could go wrong…" Lilietta worried.

"How?" the Pantherian questioned.

Darkness stood up with anticipation. "If it does, I want to be there!"

Aqua smacked her on the head bluntly. "Quiet, masochist."

The blonde just stared at the goddess in shock.

* * *

Diablo put a finger on his chin as he walked with Nanana and Shera. "Hmm… the southern gate should be a three-day walk from here."

Shera gasped in slight surprise. "That's far…"

After a moment Diablo turned to the elf. "Tell me, Shera, do you know any teleportation spells?"

Shera almost guffawed at his question. "Huh? No way. If I did, things would be so much easier."

Diablo nodded to himself. '_I see. So warp abilities aren't common like they were in the game._'

Nanana argued, '_Or she just doesn't know how to use them._'

'_Possibly._'

Shera, puffing her cheeks with a pout and frustration boiling, finally shouted, "Okay, that's it!"

"What's it?" Nanana questioned, confused by her outburst.

Staring at the two angrily, Shera demanded, "What's with the mana you two keep sharing!?"

Diablo and Nanana stared at the girl in disbelief, not sure how to react.

"Well?!" Shera demanded, almost in tears.

"It's mana-sharing," Nanana explained simply.

"Huh?" she asked, her previous frustration disappearing quickly.

"I have a little trouble making mana on my own, so Diablo often shares his with me."

Shera's ears drooped as she pouted in confusion. She remained silent for a few moments, her mouth occasionally opening to speak, but with no words. Eventually she just relented. "Okay… let's keep going…"

Diablo sighed in relief as the party continued on.

* * *

Soon, the trio arrived at the large stone gate separating the province from the plains.

Diablo stared at the wall in quiet thought. '_This wall looks less imposing than when we first came through._'

Nanana shrugged and replied, '_Probably because you know you could crush it with a single spell._'

'_Maybe._'

Shera waved to one of the guards atop the wall with a bright smile, her chest swaying pleasingly as she did. "Hhii!"

The guard at the top of the wall stared down at Shera, practically drooling.

That got Diablo's ire as he twitched an eyebrow. '_… I don't like the way he's looking at her… not at all…_' "Ahem!" he growled out to get his attention.

The man shuddered as he finally took notice of Diablo. "L – Lord Diablo?" he asked as his voice cracked.

"I have come to observe my Followers on a quest. Now if you would be so kind as to not stare at her like a piece of meat…"

The guard's face went pale. "I – I was not. A – Ahem, open the gate!"

Diablo and the girls walked into the small fort and approached a man with armor that was significantly more ornate than the rest, presumably the head guard. As Shera handed him the basket, Diablo grumbled, "You should try and keep your soldiers restrained."

"R – Right…" the man muttered as he took the basket, slightly confused by Diablo's words.

Shera, however, was oblivious to the whole thing, just looking at Diablo.

"Good. Now, is there anything else?" the horned man questioned.

The head guard only shook his head.

Diablo turned to leave when another one of the guards ran up to the man in charge, out of breath and face like he had seen a ghost.

The head guard approached the man and sat him down. "What's going on?"

"They're… here… out there…!" the man gasped as he grabbed the commander's shoulder.

"Who?" he asked, befuddled.

"Them… out there…!"

"Who?! Who, dammit?"

"F – Fallen! Over one hundred Fallen!"

Diablo raised an eyebrow in thought. "That's it? Only a hundred?"

Nanana gave him a sideways stare. '_I know you're powerful, but don't forget, the Fallen acted as mini-bosses._'

'_I know. Don't _you_ forget I soloed most of their leaders._'

Nanana just shrugged. '_Right, right. Well still, a hundred of them at once is nothing to sneeze at._'

"Where are they?" Diablo questioned.

Saluting weakly, the man pointed to the plain outside the fort. "Sir! Coming over the hill!"

"Thank you for the information," Diablo replied with a nod before leaping over the railing and landing on the bridge below with a thud.

Shera ran to the railing after him, though correctly decided not to jump over. "D – Diablo?! Wait!"

Nanana folded her arms with interest. "Well this will be fun…"

"You can't let him go alone…" Shera begged, grabbing Nanana's hand.

"He'll be fine," Nanana responded confidently.

"If you say so…"

Nanana just smirked. "It's Diablo, he won't have any trouble with them."

"Okay…"

Her smirk vanished slightly as she looked down at Diablo approaching the edge of the bridge. '_Don't make me a liar you bastard…_'

Diablo stood and waited, flexing his neck as he waited for the horde of monsters to approach.

He did not have to wait long before the first signs of the enemy appeared.

Many monsters of many types, tall, short, fat, thin, muscular, svelte, some with reptilian heads and scales, others with pig-like faces and skin like leather.

However, what caught Diablo's attention, when the advancing army got close enough, was the one at the head of their forces.

Riding atop a tall, long-necked reptile with white scales, sat a young girl with dark, wheat-colored skin, her lithe, slightly curvy figure barely hidden under the scant black and grey armor, a massive purple halberd in her grasp.

As the girl and her army got closer and stopped, Diablo frowned slightly. "… Really? You're the leader? I expected someone taller. And bustier."

* * *

Back inside the city, Rem sat across from Celestine inside the tavern, staring at her with light frustration. "Why would you do something like that?"

Celestine could sigh before answering, "For all the trouble Galluk, and by extension the Guild, has caused you and your friends."

"Y – You didn't have to," Rem argued weakly.

Celestine put a hand up in denial. "It's fine. Just so you know, I also expelled Galluk from the Guild."

"That's good."

"He did, however, tell me something intriguing."

Rem looked at her in confusion. "Huh? What did he say?"

"That Diablo truly is a Demon Lord. One from another world."

"We already told you that."

"The elf girl did, but she is an unusual one. So, it's true then?"

"Maybe. Although… he did give us a Falna…"

Celestine's expression slackened in disbelief at that answer. "He gave you a Falna…?"

Aqua chimed in, "Yeah! And that's something only a god can do!"

"That doesn't mean he isn't a Demon Lord," Celestine argued.

"There's no way a demon can do that."

"Are you still on about that?" Rem asked, irritated.

Celestine then explained, "A Demon Lord can be anything from any race, young lady."

"Huh, wait, seriously?" Aqua asked in disbelief.

Celestine nodded plainly. "Yes, take Grima for example."

Aqua just stared at her blankly for a moment. "Huh? Grimer?"

Everyone in the room just stared at her.

Celestine could only sigh in response before redirecting the conversation. "Rem, I'd like to ask you something very simple, and very important."

"What is it?" Rem questioned.

"Are you certain he's actually a Demon Lord?"

Rem nodded firmly. "I am. He told me once he even subjugated five others."

"Five others?"

"Five other Demon Lords."

Celestine's eyes shot wide momentarily before calming herself. "Many people can say many things. How can you be certain?"

Rem stared silently at the woman for a moment before nodding. "… I just am."

"I see… If what you said is true then he is not a Demon Lord, but a Great Demon Lord. And if what my scouts reported to me is true, it's certainly possible."

"Pardon?"

"I sent some people I trust to investigate the scenes of his last few battles."

"Ah. The Man-Eating Forest and Carne Village."

"Not just that, but the Cave of Gorgon."

"What? How did you…?"

"I have my methods. And the things I saw reported there were not something that should be possible. Elemental magic is normally nowhere near that strong. Just reading the reports sent shivers down my spine… I can easily believe he is on the level of power and rank as the other Great Demon Lords, Grima Nava and Krebskulm."

Rem frowned slightly in thought. "So… what do you want him to do then?"

"I… don't know. To be honest, he frightens me."

"H – Huh?" Rem stuttered in surprise.

"He frightens me. His power, what he can and would do. I want to believe in him, like you do. I do. But as the head of the Mage's Guild, I can't just let him go."

Rem frowned deeply. "… But he hasn't hurt me yet…"

Celestine nodded in return. "That's what I'm worried about. How do you know he isn't a Fallen planning to release Krebskulm?"

"Because if he was, he would've killed me already."

"I can see that, but –" Celestine began before a crash outside alerted them.

"Hey, you can't come in here!" a woman with short, pointed ears shouted as a man shoved her aside.

"Don't touch me, Demi scum!" a distorted, monstrous voice snarled.

Celestine narrowed her eyes suspiciously before the doors to the room slammed open.

Galluk stumbled into the room, clothes tattered, eyes bloodshot, hands dripping with blood, his face and arm twisted with what appeared as black vines wrapping around him from the pulsing, glowing dagger in his right hand. "L – Lady Celes…! Have… have you reconsidered what you said last night!? I mean, it's strange, isn't it?! Why was made to leave the Mage's Guild for doing the right thing!?"

"The right thing…?" Celestine asked, her temper flaring up momentarily before she got ahold of it. Sighing, she stood up and faced him. "I told you already, Galluk. What you did was wrong, plain and simple."

Galluk stood there, twitching and laughing weakly. "That's strange! It's strange, isn't it!? For someone as talented as me to be let go, there must be some kind of mistake! I – It has to be some kind of mistake… I had to give the people who came and tried to take my robes a good b – beating, and t – tried to make them say the truth… But, they kept lying! Th – They kept saying that I had been l – let go…"

Celestine narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Beating? Are the others from the Guild okay?"

Rem backed away from Celestine slightly. '_That's a pretty serious expression she has…_'

Aqua, seemingly oblivious to the nature of the situation, stood up and angrily pointed at the man. "Hey! We're busy here, go away!"

"Quiet, whore!" the crazed man shouted.

"H – Hah!?" Aqua gasped in disbelief.

Galluk quickly turned his anger back towards Celestine. "Dammit, Lady Celes! Don't worry about those runts! Worry about me! That… that demon…! He's not right in the head! He disrespected me t - twice in a row! He's not suitable for Lady Rem to be around, so all I did was try to keep him away from her! Why do you choose to worry about those second-rate underlings instead of me!?"

Aqua finally had enough and stomped over to the man, enraged. "Hey! Don't badmouth hi –!" she suddenly stopped when a sharp pain hit her suddenly.

"I said quiet, whore!" he snarled as he plunged the dagger into Aqua's abdomen.

Everyone in the room remained silent for a moment before Rem shouted in horror, "Aqua!"

Celes quickly motioned to her two guards, who immediately ran over towards Galluk as Aqua stumbled away in horrified disbelief.

"Wh – What the…?" she stammered as her top was stained red. "Wh – Why…?"

Galluk cackled madly as the guards prepared to grab him. "They were right! They were right! There's no one in this world who can understand my gifts! It's strange, why am I not treated well and cared about when I am so clearly and evidently superior!?"

Rem's blood ran cold when she noticed the large gem in the blade's hilt begin to move, as if looking directly at her. She then watched as its sides curled in and covered the gem for a moment, blinking. Instantly she grabbed for one of the gems in her pocket as Darkness reached for her sword.

Wiz cautioned, "Wait, if you fight here, you'll damage the tavern!"

"Silence!" Galluk howled before raising his dagger high up before stabbing himself in the abdomen.

"The hell!?" Rem and Celestine shouted before black liquid like tar began pouring from Galluk's mouth and the wound in his stomach.

"Wh – What's going on!?" Megumin shouted.

The guards finally got close enough to grab Galluk, but when they did, Rem felt a sensation in the back of her mind screaming at her. "No! Get back!"

Almost immediately a powerful wave of energy shot outwards from Galluk's body before his skin and limbs began warping and twisting in inhuman ways.

However, the guards were quickly impaled by the writhing mass before it began to finally take the shape of a large, hulking, reptilian humanoid with dark blue skin covered in thick, black armor plating.

"This is bad…" Celestine muttered quietly.

Rem, not so quietly, shouted her realization of what was happening. "A… A Fallen…! Shadow Snake!" she shouted before throwing her crystal on the ground, causing a large, jet black snake to emerge from the small explosion and coil around the monster. "Ensnare him!"

The beast huffed in annoyance as it stood up. **"Damned human. Why'd he have to waste so much time talkin'?"** It was then he noticed the Shadow Snake coiling around him and grabbed its head, yanking and easily ripping the creature in half.

"Wh – What?" '_He dealt with a summon of that level with his bare hands…?_'

The beast was distracted at a pained whimper nearby and looked down at Aqua slowly trying to get out of the room. **"Hah? You're still not dead yet?"**

"Oy," an annoyed voice growled from behind.

He turned to see who it was, only for a red and black, armored, high-heeled boot to slam into the small of his back from behind, sending him crashing out into the street through the wall.

The others turned to the source of the voice in confusion and fear.

* * *

Diablo stood silently opposite the tanned girl for a few moments. "So, tell me. What are your plans here?"

She wordlessly pointed at him, causing one of the large Fallens, a boar-headed monstrosity well over four meters tall to approach him. "Kill."

"Pork, I see."

**"You small,"** the boar droned. **"You small. Look weak. Kill…"** it droned again before raising the massive club in its hand high up and slamming it down on top of him.

"Diablo!" Shera shouted in worry overhead.

'_Soul Greatsword,_' he said in his mind before swiping his hand, a large, ethereal, blue sword appearing in his grasp, slicing the boar down the middle. "Next?"

Two more giant Fallen charged at Diablo. The first one to reach him received a powerful punch in the stomach that sent the beast flying into a small hill.

"Wind Blade," he announced before a powerful flurry of nearly invisible scythes of wind swirled around the monster, chopping it to pieces.

Diablo disinterestedly huffed at the girl. "Is this how it will keep going? You send cannon fodder at me to die one after another until all but you and a field of corpses remain?"

The girl hissed angrily at his taunts.

Diablo folded his arms in annoyance. "Maybe I should just wipe out the field of weaklings in one move."

Snarling, she approached Diablo with determination. "I'll fight."

"Very well then, little one."

The girl puffed her cheeks in irritation. "Don't like being mocked."

"I'm not mocking."

Readying her weapon, she retorted, "May be small, but Edelgard is the best spear user of the Fallen. Won't lose."

Diablo sighed to himself before looking the girl. '_Well, at the very least, it seems she's the commander. If I take her down the rest will probably scatter. But I can tell just from looking at her she won't go down easy._' Stretching his neck, he looked at the girl in thought. "Now then, this should be a good warm up."

She stared at him for a few moments in silence. "Do it…? Don't do it… I'll do it!" she shouted before the head of her weapon began to glow brightly. "Lance Charge!" she called out before shooting ahead like a rock out of a cannon.

Diablo watched her curiously. '_A barebones basic attack. Any skilled player using it would cancel just after the charge finishes and switch to something else. Let's see what she does…_'

* * *

Back in the city, Rem and the others stared at the figure that had kicked the Fallen.

A tall, curvaceous woman with bright, wild, flaming red hair and eyes to match, clad in a red top that looked more like a bikini, with a matching red bottom that covered very little, an overly long red cape, and thigh-high black, armored boots with red high-heels adorned with large, red and black wings. What stood out most, besides her chest, were the massive bone-white horns atop her head and the massive, blood-red ax she wielded with one hand.

Seeming to recognize her, Wiz paled even further and ducked behind Darkness to hide.

Darkness glanced at the frightened brunette in confusion, while Rem stared at the redhead in terror. '_Wh – What is this… this power…?_'

The red-haired woman looked around the tavern in annoyance. "Tch… I could've sworn I sensed him here… Well, guess I'll deal with that later."

**"Oy…"** the Fallen snarled as he stood up. **"The hell do you think you are?"**

The red-haired woman looked at him annoyed and disinterested. "None of your damn business, ugly."

Rem glanced back when she heard a scream and sees people fleeing the Fallen.

Celestine then whispered just loud enough for Rem's ears to pick up, "This is bad, we can't deal with him and her at the same time."

Rem nodded subtly in agreement.

"Now get lost, furball," the ax-wielder demanded.

That only got the beast angrier. **"I, the great Gregore, won't be spoken down to by –!"**

He was cut off midsentence as the fiery woman shot a blast of red energy from her hand that blew his head to pieces, causing it to waver momentarily before collapsing to the ground. "I told you to go away. You only get one warning."

Rem shakily turned around in fear and watched as Gregore's body dissolved into ash, leaving a large purple stone behind. '_What… is she…?_' she wondered in awe as she looked at the redhead.

The red-haired woman's attention was then drawn directly to Rem, causing her to narrow her eyes in thought. "Wait…" she mumbled to herself before approaching the Pantherian, only for Celestine to get in front of her. "Don't bother human, you'll just get yourself killed."

"Who are you…?" Celestine asked, attempting to keep the tremble in her voice to a minimum.

A tic mark popped on the woman's forehead. "Who am _I_?" Pointing to Rem, she added, "That girl is covered in Lord Momonga's energy and you don't know who _I _am?!"

"Lord who?" Rem muttered.

Sighing in relent, the woman just shrugged with a hiss. "Tch. Fine. I am Satan, Demon Lord of Wrath, of the Evil Lords."

Megumin looked at her for a moment. "… That was just a bunch of words."

The woman snarled at the petite girl. "What was that Crimson Eyesore?" Clearing her throat to maintain her composure, barely, she readdressed the others in the room. "Now, I have no business with you lot. Except the cat."

Wiz let out a small sigh of relief.

"So you're not here to bring down the city's barrier?" Celestine asked with suspicion.

Satan just raised an eyebrow. "Barrier?" She blinked when she realized what she meant. "Oh, you mean that pitiful thing? I just walked right through it."

"Wh – What…?" Celestine stammered as her skin went almost white as snow in horror. '_She just… walked right through it? Is that… is that even possible…?_'

Motioning to Rem, Satan noted, "I'll interrogate you later, cat. For now, I'll leave the rest of you alive if you answer my question."

Gulping nervously, Celestine decided it best not to fight it. "Which is what?"

Slamming the end of her ax against the wooden floor, she angrily demanded, "Who blew up my castle?!"

The group all stared at her silently. "… Eh?"

"Somebody used an explosion spell on my castle and nearly blew it to pieces!"

Megumin stared silently as the others in the room slowly looked at her. "U – Uhh…" she stammered as Satan looked at her.

Narrowing her eyes, Satan demanded, "… Was it you, Crimson Eyesore? Did you blow up my castle and nearly kill my kitties!?"

"Uuuhhh…"

"You did, didn't you!?"

Suddenly, Aqua stood up in shock as she looked at her stomach. "Hey! I'm okay!?"

Satan turned to her, annoyed. "Shut up."

"Run!" Celestine shouted. She and the girls immediately ran out of the hole Gregore had made.

"Huh?" Aqua grunted before Darkness grabbed her and ran with the others.

Satan growled angrily as she rolled her eyes. "Supreme Beings dammit…"

As the girls ran, Mordred suddenly ran up to where Gregore had been and saw the girls running and then saw Satan. Drawing her blade, she shouted, "Go! I'll hold her off!"

Satan flipped her ax into a reverse grip as she walked towards the group. "Go home to Daddy little knight. You're not involved, yet."

Mordred's eyebrow twitched heavily at the demand as she raised her blade. "Okay, before I was just going to hold you off. Now I'm going to finish you off."

"I doubt you could even make me sweat, li'l kid."

Mordred lurched back before charging forward with a cone of energy around her. "Sonic Thrust!"

Satan effortlessly blocked the strike with her bare hand. "Hoh?" she hummed in surprise. "That's quite an impressive amount of force. Unfortunately it's not enough," she retorted before sending Mordred flying by throwing her by her sword.

"Gah!" Mordred growled as she was thrown against a wall. Standing weakly, she saw as Satan charged a large ball of energy before throwing it at her. "Guardian!" she called out before being surrounded by a large dome of energy that shattered as the energy ball hit it and exploded. As the dust cleared, Mordred only saw Satan immediately in front of her.

Satan followed it up by slamming a fist into Mordred's abdomen hard enough to dent her armor.

"Shit…" she cursed as she fell unconscious.

* * *

Diablo dashed to the side as Edelgard charged at him.

Edelgard stopped her dash right at its apex. "Swing Spike!" she shouted before she began spinning like a tornado with her blade almost invisible from the speed.

Diablo carefully avoided her movements before she finally came to a stop and stumbled about slightly, dazed. "Is that the limit of your techniques?" He narrowed his eyes as she steadied herself before glaring at him. "That seems rather trivial for a Fallen that wields such a weapon. And such a shame. Now leave."

Edelgard hissed as she lowered herself for another attack. "Not enough? Then… will use this!" She pulled her lance back as far as she could hold it, before the blade began to become enveloped in writhing black energy that soon spread over the entire weapon.

Diablo hummed curiously as he watched her prepare.

"Sacrificial… Charge!" she called out before taking off from her spot with such speed that some of the stone cracked.

Diablo, however, just grinned with intrigue. "Let's try it! See if you can damage me!" '_Sacrificial Charge is an attack you have to be at least Level Eighty to learn. How interesting._'

Edelgard charged at insane speed, the darkness around her weapon reaching out and impacting Diablo before her actual weapon did, with enough force to knock him back slightly.

Diablo managed to maintain his stance as Edelgard kipped up and spun in the air, nailing him in the side of the head with her weapon before leaping up into the and slamming her weapon down with all the force she could muster. '_This actually hurts…_'

Edelgard panted for a few moments before jumping back slightly.

Diablo slumped slightly where he stood, the stonework around his feet buckling from the force. '_So… this is what it feels like to take damage… Not an actual wound, but almost like my strength is being sapped…_' "How interesting," he remarked before standing up straight and stretching his neck.

The petite girl's entire body froze where she stood as she stared at the man in disbelief. "Not… possible… gave it… all I had. You're still standing…"

Diablo ignored her as he flexed his joints in thought. '_In the game Sacrificial Charge takes fifteen percent of your Health, which isn't much. But here, that means it dumps a quarter of your actual strength. Something like that could mean the difference between life and death._' "Now then… Submit," he demanded before pointing his staff at her. '_Part of me wants to keep this going so I can test things with her. She might be able to some higher Tier stuff._'

Suddenly, one of the knights came running out from the fort in a panic. "Sir Diablooo!"

Hearing his voice, Diablo turned to the man in a mix of irritation and worry. "You fool, stay back or you will get killed!"

The man almost skid to a stop before hastily blurting out, "S – Sir, I have a message from Faltra! There's a Fallen attacking the city!"

"What!?"

Edelgard's exhausted features lit up subtly with a smirk. "Gregore did good. He's dumb, but works hard."

Diablo turned to the confident girl and hissed in frustration. "Tch, son of a bitch… I'll need to wipe these fools out and return to Faltra immediately." Reaching behind his back, he pulled the large crystal he had taken from the Slane soldiers. "This has been fun, but I have places to be."

Edelgard readied herself as she recognized the Summoning Crystal.

Diablo raised it high before slamming it on the bridge. "Dominion Authority! Come forth and deal with these pests for me!"

In a blinding flash of light, the massive mechanical angel appeared in the air, overlooking the small cadre of Fallen.

The knights on the fort walls all looked on in awe, the Fallens behind Edelgard slowly inching away in fear.

Seeing this, she turned to them angrily. "What are you doing?!"

"If you have any intelligence at all, you will join them in retreat! So leave!"

"Will not. It is my mission to revive the Demon Lord, after all. That's why Edelgard tries hard, even if I die."

Diablo could only huff at the answer, assuming she was referring to Krebskulm. "Save the Demon Lord? You? Don't make me laugh."

The girl clicked her tongue in annoyance. "I don't like being mocked…"

"You understand nothing, girl! There is only one True Demon Lord. I! Great Demon Lord Diablo! Yet you, ignorant of this fact, devote yourself to a false patron!"

Edelgard's expression widened at her response before narrowing as she readied her weapon. "True Demon Lord…? No."

Diablo could only shrug before raising his hand in command. "So be it. Then know your fate was handed to you by the True Demon Lord Diablo!" Swinging his arm down towards the amassed group of monsters, he called out to the mechanical angel, "Holy Smite!"

The large spear in Dominion Authority's grasp began to glow brightly before shattering into dozens of fragments that began orbiting in the air above the gathering of monsters, the space between them filling with bright light that soon shot down in an immense pillar of pure light.

The surrounding area shook and rumbled violently, dust and debris getting sent flying in all directions, the people on the bridge holding on tight just to prevent from being blown away.

As the light died down and the dust settled, Dominion Authority dispelling into particles of lights seconds later, Diablo saw the huge crater where the opposite bank of the river had been. Only a few Fallen were left alive, outside the attack's range, but still horribly burned and scarred from the proximity. Looking around, he sighed before shrugging. '_She was kinda cute, shame it had to come to this._'

Flaring his cape as he turned around, he looked up at his allies. "Shera, Nanana, come, we're returning to Faltra immediately."

"W – Wait…" Edelgard's faint voice called out.

Almost not believing his ears, Diablo turned around to see Edelgard in the center of the crater, her mount vaporized and her armor in tatters, leaving her with barely anything, covered in light burns, but alive and intact. '_She survived that?! That was a Seventh Tier spell! Not only that, as a Fallen, it would've hit her with extra damage…_' "You're much more durable than I originally thought."

"Wait… I said…" she demanded as she weakly, and fruitlessly, attempted to stand.

Diablo merely turned his back to her and waved as he left. "While I would love to, you've already wasted enough of my time. Just know you have earned some modicum of my respect, Fallen."

The girl stared up at him with a mixture of emotions as he disappeared beyond the bridge. "… True Demon Lord… Diablo…"

* * *

As the trio left the fort, Diablo grit his teeth in frustration. '_Dammit, it'll take two days to get back even if we sprint. And I don't think Shera could keep up a sprint for that long…_'

'_Can't you just create a portal?_' Nanana questioned.

Diablo shook his head. '_Those portals only work with Touch Me's mirror._'

'_Ah…_'

However, he suddenly stopped in recognition. '_Wait! What about the Return spell?_'

Nanana stopped in surprise at his sudden internal shout. '_Loud. And you lost me._'

'_It's the most absolute basic spell in the game, used to teleport the player back to their most recent city._'

Nanana nodded with a shrug. '_No clue if it'll work, but it's our best shot._'

Nodding, Diablo grabbed Shera and Nanana's hands, causing the two to blush slightly. "Return!" he shouted before the trio were suddenly showered in a blinding light.

* * *

Back in the city, the girls ran through one of the side streets, Megumin ducked suddenly as a blast of red energy flew over her head, impacting a cart and exploding violently.

"Stop running, dammit!" the red-haired demon shouted in annoyance.

"If I do, you'll just kill me!" Megumin shouted back desperately.

"And if you don't you'll just die tired!"

"I'd rather take the third option, live!" she shouted as the group rounded another corner.

"You forfeit that option when you blew up my castle you brat!" Waving her hand out, she fired a spread shot of energy blasts.

Celestine momentarily raised her wand and created a small barrier just strong enough to deflect the shots.

Tired of constantly fleeing, Rem pulled out a slightly larger crystal and threw it down. "Aslau!"

Suddenly, a massive white bull with three horns appeared in a flash of light before charging at Satan.

The woman easily backhanded the beast away, sending it crashing into a wall before it dispersed into light particles. "Don't toy with me, girl. You may have Lord Momonga's mark, but if you get in my way I won't hold back!"

Seeing that behind them was only a dead end, Darkness stepped in front of the group and drew her sword.

"You can't be serious!" Aqua exclaimed in disbelief. "She's a Demon Lord!"

"I am," Darkness responded with a confident grin.

Satan hissed in annoyance, stopping when something caught her attention and raised a hand to block a wave of blue energy coming at her.

Mordred, battered but not downed, approached her, angered. "Don't think I'm letting you get away that easily, dammit!"

"You're a stubborn kid," Satan hissed. "Unfortunately, I don't have time to play with you," she growled before raising her ax, only for Darkness to suddenly charge at her. She blocked the strike easily, but her eyes widened momentarily at the force behind her attack. '_That's a lot of force for a human. I might need to take her seriously._'

"Sonic Thrust!" Mordred called out before shooting forward, encased in a cone of energy.

"Damn brat!" Satan snarled before grabbing Darkness by the arm and throwing her at Mordred.

'_Shit!_' Mordred cursed as she tried to stop her charge, only for Darkness to slam into her and knock them both to the ground.

Megumin tensed her fingers around her staff as she remembered what Diablo had said to her.

* * *

_Diablo stood over the incapacitated Megumin after using her Explosion. "Try saying the chant in your head instead of out loud next time, and try to limit the amount of mana you pump into the spell instead of all of it. A controlled, limited Explosion is much more dangerous than just blowing your load in one go."_

* * *

Megumin nodded to herself and raised her staff at Satan.

Aqua paled in horror. "A – Are you crazy?! You'll destroy the whole town!"

Gulping slightly, Megumin aimed at Satan and thought the name. '_Explosion!_' A baseball sized blast of energy shot from her staff and hit Satan, impacting her with a large explosion that sent her flying. Her face lit up with joy. "It worked! It really worked!"

Satan stood up from her small crater and growled at the girl. "You little bitch!"

Mordred and Darkness both stood up and nodded to each other.

Darkness rushed at Satan with a wide swing that the red demon easily blocked.

"Sonic Thrust!" Mordred called out again before charging.

"Again!?" Satan snarled before reaching to grab Darkness, only for the blonde to grab her instead and throw her right into Mordred's path.

Hissing, the redhead managed to twist out of the way of Mordred's attack and slammed a knee into her gut, only to realize Mordred had latched onto her leg. "What the –?!"

Darkness readied herself to charge at the woman, only for Megumin to fire off another small explosion, sending Darkness hurtling like a cannonball and tackling Satan to the ground.

The redhead's temper was growing stronger at that point as she slammed a fist into the back of Darkness' head. "You're becoming a nuisance!"

Darkness, dazed but still conscious, stood and wobbled backwards. "Ow…"

A drop of sweat fell down Satan's face in disbelief. '_What kind of insane endurance does this girl have!?_'

Aqua, deciding to get involved, charged at the woman with her right glowing brightly. "Goddess Blow!" However, before she even got close, Satan, without even looking at her, whacked her with the broad side of her ax, sending her hurtling into a nearby second story window.

Blinking, Satan looked around. "Huh. That must have been a gnat."

Taking her chance, Mordred tried another attack. "Beast!" she called out before charging with a shoulder ram, causing a huge ethereal monster head to burst to life made of mana that rammed into Satan from behind, damaging her cloak and sending her into a wall.

The wall exploded as Satan stepped out of it, her eyes glowing red with rage. "That. Is. IT! I have had enough of you little shits! I don't care if you _do_ belong to Lord Momonga! I'll apologize after I kill you!" In an instant, Satan charged forward at Mordred, the blonde raising her sword to strike, only to watch in terrified disbelief as her sword arm was sent flying at the shoulder, landing nearby.

"There, now you won't be as much of a nuisance."

The blonde stumbled to the side, looking at the wound where her arm had been, the situation finally dawning on her mind. "N – No… No, no, no, nononono!"

"Mordred!" Rem cried out before grabbing for several more crystals on her belt. Throwing out all three, she shouted in succession, "Rock Wan, Stone Man, Dragonfly!" In bursts of light, a massive brown wolf, a large humanoid monster made of stone, and an oversized, bright green dragonfly appeared.

"So you want to be next, cat?" Satan huffed.

The dragonfly beat its wings at high speed, sending a barrage of wind blades at her, the wolf whipping its tail and sending spikes of stone flying out, the golem merely charging at her.

At the same time, Megumin fired multiple Explosions at Satan.

Satan swung her ax wide, sending out an arc of crimson energy that destroyed almost every attack, though several of the quills and one of Megumin's explosions made it through the smoke and hit her, all exploding on impact.

She hissed at the minor damage. "How irritating. You lot just don't give up, do you?"

Suddenly, Lilietta ran up behind Satan with a large board in her grasp and smashed it over her head.

Satan twitched an eyebrow slowly before turning around to her.

"What are you doing!?" Rem exclaimed. "Run!"

Satan did not give her time to react and swung her ax right at the girl's midsection. The impact moved Lilietta aside slightly, her dress torn, but she herself was unharmed. "… What the hell!?"

Lilietta, dazed, looked up at the redhead with a smirk.

"How'd you do that!?"

"Diablo's secret weapon," she retorted confidently.

Rem blinked in confusion before realizing what was going on. '_The armor!_'

"Who?" Satan asked, confused.

Taking her opportunity, Darkness took up both her own and Mordred's swords and attack Satan from behind with two powerful slashes in the exact same spot, managing to leave a shallow gash in the redhead's back.

"Gah!" Satan howled as the surprise tumbled her forward. "You damned blonde bitch!" Satan snarled before turning on her heel and impaling Darkness through the abdomen with the spike atop her ax.

Darkness stood frozen in shock, coughing up a small amount of blood, before groaning as Satan hoisted her in the air on the spike and threw her aside, crashing her into a wall.

Flicking the blood off the top of her ax, Satan huffed in irritation. "That's two down."

In the nearby window, still hanging limply from it, Aqua sneezed.

"Now for the rest." Turning to the others, Satan pointed a finger at each of the group. "Eeny, meeny, miny, you," she stopped, pointing directly at Rem.

"Wha –?" she blurted out before her knee slammed into Rem's gut, buckling her and knocking her unconscious.

"There. Now for the little runt," she snarled before turning to Megumin. However, as she approached the brunette, she felt a rumble below her feet and saw a large mass of black energy swirling beneath her. "The hell!?" she cursed before leaping back just as a massive pillar of pure, black energy shot up.

Wiz, standing nearby with her hands outstretched, focused on the redhead. '_Forgive me, but I need to stop you from hurting anyone else until he gets back._'

"Who's there!?" Satan shouted as she looked around frantically.

"Negative Gate!" Wiz exclaimed before firing off a blast of pure darkness at Satan.

The demoness leapt out of the way just in time and turned to see Wiz, or rather, a hazy apparition, nearby. "Got you!"

"Dark Sphere!"

Satan turned around to see a large, black and red glyph forming in the air behind her and swung her ax at it, only for it to explode violently. "Gah! Damn you!"

Megumin watched the events in shock. "I don't believe it… she's actually holding her back…"

Satan rushed at Wiz with her ax readied, only for Wiz to launch another spell.

"Dark Laser!" A large black orb appeared in front of her that fired a barrage of shots at Satan like a machine gun, who had to stop and put her focus into deflecting them.

"Dammit all!" Satan howled, barely blocking the fire, some shots managing to strike her. "Who the hell are you!?"

"Dark Force!"

While still focused on blocking the Dark Laser's onslaught, Satan saw another swirling black mass appear at her feet. "DAMMIT!" A massive black spike shot out of the ground, knocking Satan into the air, resulting in the Laser's last few shots pelting her before the spike of energy shattered into dozens more and rained down on her, slamming her into the ground.

Weakly forcing herself to her feet, she snarled at Wiz before the area was suddenly filled with a flurry of lights that soon took the shape of several human forms. Before Satan had a chance to sort out what was happening, one of the shapes pointed at her as it was forming.

"Dark Bullet!"

She was suddenly hit by several shots of pitch-black energy that knocked her off her feet. "Who the hell are you!?" However, her eyes shot wider than ever as the light died down and revealed who it was.

* * *

**And thus ends chapter seven! Bit of a crazy one, I know, but crazy can be fun. If you enjoyed the chapter, I would greatly appreciate reviews letting me know. If you have any questions or concerns about the chapter, or want to know what series certain characters are from, let me know in a review and I will do my best to address your queries in the next reviewer response. If you did not enjoy it, sorry about that. Leave a review letting me know what you did not like, if you must, but do try to be specific. Or, maybe, do something you actually enjoy instead.**

**Anyway! With all that waffling out of the way, until next time, bye-bye!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter VIII**

**Greetings all! Yes, Demon Lord's Adventurers is what still has my attention at the moment, so it is what I am delivering to you yet again. At least until the "event" has passed, my upload speed should be vaguely similar to this. Once things get back to normal it will sadly be an extended period of time between chapters. Hopefully not more than three months, but no promises. That said, you lot acted fast with the reviews, I appreciate it. So far they are all positive, which is always nice. As usual, many thanks to Bakuto Masaki for his assistance. That said, on to the reviewer responses!**

**dfelfkselkr: First, did you make that username by slamming your head on the keyboard? Bravo regardless.**

**I'm glad you enjoyed the fights. Fight scenes are something I struggle with on occasion, so I like to try and do them well when I can, and it especially helps when it's the story I'm passionate about, like this one. I felt the little comical moments would add some levity to what could be seen as an overall gruesome showdown. And don't worry, Satan will get some punishment for sure.**

**snakelord13: Well here you go.**

**Miltoneunis: Now, now? Or then now? Maybe now then? Or now now?**

**Darkkon27: Not to toot my own horn, but I also think this is my best story out of all of them. Even then it has some minor aspects I would like to go back and fix, either because of learning of new information or characters, or just from improving as a writer.**

**Thanos69: I wouldn't go as far as saying blessed, but thanks.**

**Messiah of authors: Megumin is mad for a lot of reasons.**

**Lawoi: This story is what I will be working on for the foreseeable future, with one or two others at the side on occasion. Sadly, I have to say I don't know what you're referring to with "The Plague Arc". Think you could tell me what series it's from? I might have seen it or read through it already and it was simply given a different title.**

**ObsidianUnknown66: Well with the quarantine going all over the planet it's not like I have much else to do. I was hoping at least someone would recognize the Seven Mortal Sins series. Thank you, I felt that exchange was a good one. It does, though which ones I won't reveal yet. If you've seen the series you might be able to guess which ones. My favorite is Mammon.**

**METALHELLSPWN: That's the one.**

**Guest: Seven Mortal Sins, also known as Sin: Nanatsu no Taizai. You want to make sure to include the "Sin" if you look it up by the Japanese name, since NNT is also the name of a Shounen series.**

**15songoku: Sin: Nanatsu no Taizai. Love Mordred myself too.**

**It is completely intentional, I promise you. Not on Diablo's part but on mine.**

**They will.**

**I think I was pretty accurate with my depiction of Galluk. Buy was a piece of shit.**

**I do my best with making her entertaining. I'll spoil it, Wiz is stronger.**

**Well I'm glad you're enjoying my writing. I'm definitely enjoying making it.**

**Wow, that was a lot of reviews in such a short amount of time. Keep it up guys! It fuels my passion. Speaking of, on to the main event!**

* * *

Satan snarled at Wiz before the area was suddenly filled with a flurry of lights that soon took the shape of several human forms. Before she had a chance to sort out what was happening, one of the shapes pointed at her as it was forming.

"Dark Bullet!"

She was suddenly hit by several shots of pitch-black energy that knocked her off her feet. "Who the hell are you!?" However, her eyes shot wider than ever as the light died down and revealed who it was. "L – Lord Momonga! L – Lady Tabula?" she wondered, looking at Diablo and Nanana in confusion.

As the light dissipated and he was able to see clearly, Diablo saw Satan standing before him and raised an eyebrow curiously. "Satan? What are you –?" he suddenly stopped cold as he saw the area around him, buildings shattered and his allies thrown all over, bloodied and battered. His curiosity turned to anger as he looked at the red-haired vixen. "… What the hell!?"

"M – My Lord?" Satan stuttered as she stumbled back from the rage in his voice.

"Did you do this?!" he demanded.

"P – Pardon?" she asked meekly.

Pointing to his friends around him, Diablo demanded, harsher, "Did _you_ do this!?"

"I had no choice! They kept stopping from punishing the Crimson Eyesore for nearly killing all my kitties!"

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"C – Come again?"

"Explain yourself, dammit!"

"S – Sir!" she replied, confused and afraid. "I was keeping a bunch of stray kittens in the castle I was staying it when an explosion destroyed part of the castle and nearly killed them!"

Diablo stared at her silently in confusion. '_… You've got to be kidding me._' "… Ha?"

"Th – That's the truth, Sir, I swear!"

Diablo folded his arms in thought. "So you went through all this… destroyed the city, injured my allies, and caused who knows what else, because of that?"

"Th – That about sums it up, Lord Mom –" she answered, only to be cut off.

"Diablo."

"S – Sir?"

"My name is Diablo now."

"Aw…" Shera pouted slightly, "I think Momonga's kinda cute."

Nanana frowned deeply as she looked at him. '_I've never seen Momo this angry before…_'

Aqua finally pulled herself out of the window and flopped to the ground. "Ow…" Standing up shakily she then saw Diablo and sighed in relief. "Wait, Diablo!?"

Hearing his name so plainly, Satan turned to scold Aqua, only for Diablo to approach her in an instant and slam her head into the ground.

"No!" he commanded. "That's enough!" Turning to the ones who could still stand, Diablo gave his orders. "Aqua, Shera, Nanana, take these potions and begin healing the others." Pulling a large number of potions from his Inventory, he handed them out. "Start with Mordred, she's the most injured. Shera, find her arm."

"Right!" the busty elf answered with a salute before looking around the battlefield.

As the trio began their work, Diablo grabbed Satan by the horns and pulled her to her feet. "I have numerous questions, and I expect truthful answers."

"O – Of course," she began, coughing from the impact, "Lord Mo – Lord Diablo, I would never lie to you." She stopped herself from calling him his old name.

"Good. First, what were you doing in that castle to begin with?"

"Lady Sinoula and Lady Albedo were growing anxious about your absence and sent me to search the world for you," she answered hastily.

"Sinoula?" he asked. '_So she's here too? That means Sinoula and Tabula are both here. I wonder how many others are…_'

"Y – Yes, sir. I made my base in this area that castle since it was unoccupied."

"And?" he prodded.

"And…?" she answered, confused.

"And where do the cats get involved."

"O – Oh…" she trailed off, embarrassed to answer. One swift glare from Diablo forced it out of her. "I… I simply began finding them while I was searching… And they were so alone and scared… I couldn't just leave them out there without anyone watching over them… They might have starved, o – or been eaten predators, or worse, been found and mistreated by humans…"

"And so, because of Megumin's Explosion, your cats were endangered and you came here to exact revenge?" he answered, dropping her back down.

"Precisely, my Lord," she answered as she shakily stood up.

"Then you went after the wrong target."

"But she cast the spell!"

"Under my instruction."

She stopped immediately as she heard his words. "… Wh – What…?"

"She is a novice at casting spells and required a target to practice that spell of hers. I suggested the old castle we stumbled upon. She may have fired the spell, but it was I who gave her the idea."

Satan merely sat silently, staring at him.

"So, if you wish to exact your revenge on anyone, it would be me."

Her silence merely continued.

"That being said, you acted foolishly and attacked my servants and my slaves without thinking."

She gulped deeply, expecting the worst.

He noticed her silence, confused. "Um… Satan?" Looking at her, he noticed the tears beginning to form in her eyes. Sighing, irritated, he asked bluntly, "What?"

"Why are you trying to take blame for trying to kill my kittens…?" she asked through soaked eyes.

"Because it was I who gave the order. And," he paused, looking around at Shera and the others healing the girls, "you could have killed people important to me."

"Wh – What?" Satan asked, confused.

'_Crap, is that sounding a little too sappy…?_'

"Diablo…?" Rem asked as she finished healing and walked up to him. "You made it…" she muttered before stumbling forward, Diablo catching her with a hand to her shoulder.

Turning his attention back to Satan, he added, "… After all, they belong to me." Sending an intense stare at Satan, he added coldly, "And if you damage my property, you'd better have a damn good reason."

"Diablo…" Rem mumbled, looking up at him in awe.

'_Uh-oh… was that too far in the other direction…?_'

Rem merely smiled before hugging gently onto his arm. "Diablo…"

'_Wait, that makes her happy!?_'

Shera, seeing this, pouted and ran up to him. "Hey, Rem! That's no fair!" she argued before wrapping herself around Diablo's free arm. Looking at Rem she taunted, "Besides, if you hug him, all he'll feel is your ribs!"

'_So soft…_'

Rem puffed her cheeks and hugged tighter, embarrassed. "What?! That's not true!"

Diablo could only gulp. '_Except it is, but it's kind of nice in its own way…_'

Satan looked over the situation in thought and then saw the collars on the girls' necks. "… So these are your sex slaves…?"

Diablo's voice caught in his throat at the accusation.

"E – Eh!?" Rem stammered, Shera was just confused, Nanana and the others just looked at her.

"What?" Satan asked, just looking at everyone.

Diablo sighed and pushed the two away gently. "I'll answer that later, we need to heal the others. I'll deal with you then."

Nearby, Mordred stumbled around deliriously. "Hello, Mother, is that wine for me…?"

"… Shera, go lie her down."

* * *

Later, Mordred slowly came to in a bed, her mind still catching up. "What…?"

"Don't move too much, I'm almost done reattaching it," Diablo urged.

"Oh…"

"Had to remove most of your armor to do it. It's pretty much a wreck."

"Oh… wait, wh – what?!" she shouted, her face flushing red.

"If you don't stop moving I'm going to knock you out again," he warned. "And I don't want to add head trauma to your list of injuries."

Lying back down, but still blushing madly, she asked weakly, "Y – You didn't see anything… did you…?"

"No, your clothing under your armor wasn't in the way." Gulping slightly, he looked her over, realizing her body was significantly more curvaceous and endowed than her armor had initially portrayed. If the thin strip of fabric holding her chest in place had not been as strong as it was, he would have had many other issues to deal with. '_Just how did she stuff such things in there…?_'

'_Focus, we don't need you attaching her arm backwards,_' Nanana chided.

'_I won't, I won't._'

As she watched him deftly sew Mordred's arm back together before using a healing spell, she asked, '_Hey, how come you need to focus on something else to basic stuff like making potions or forging, but you don't with this?_'

'_Because sewing is something I was able to do in real life. Well, I don't mean I sewed things quite like this, but still. My second wife had absolutely no skill in such things, so I had to do it most of the time._'

That revelation threw her for a loop. '_You were married?! Twice!?_'

'_Four times, actually._'

'_Haaa!?_'

'_They didn't really give me an option._'

'_They? What do you mean? Like, you married them all at once?_'

'_Pretty much,_' he answered plainly as he began applying healing magic to the wound after finishing the sewing.

'_So you've just always had a harem!? What _are_ you!?_'

'_A man with weird luck and very forward wives. Hell, my second wife was a Pandora._'

Nanana's jaw nearly hit the floor. '_Seriously!?_' After taking a moment to collect herself, she added, '_I'm starting to think you were a Demon Lord the whole time…_'

Mordred, growing impatient, looked at Diablo. "Is it done yet?"

"Yes, it is," he answered as he moved away from her.

Sitting up and flexing her arm, she winced in discomfort.

"Take it easy for a little bit. You might want to avoid questing for a few days."

"Just great…" she snarled. "Well, at least Mother isn't going to hear about this. Or my cousin…"

"I see."

Sighing, Mordred then noticed Darkness, not injured in the slightest, happily talking with the others. Frowning in thought, she turned her attention to Diablo as he stood up and left. "Sir Diablo, may I ask you a question?"

"Make it quick, I need to punish that fool."

"That Crusader seems about equal to me in strength, so why was she able to withstand that Demon Lord's attacks so well?"

Diablo could only shrug. "Because of who she is. And likely because she's in my Familia."

"… I – I see…" she answered somberly.

"If there's nothing else, I need to handle this," he asserted before leaving.

"R – Right…"

Nanana frowned in worry as he left.

* * *

Heading down the hall, Diablo walked into a secluded room where Satan sat silently on a bed.

She glanced up as he entered before looking back down at her feet. "Are you going to kill me?"

"No," he answered plainly.

"Abandon me?"

"No."

"Lock me up?"

"No," he answered once more.

She looked at him, annoyed and confused. "Well then what _are _you going to do?"

He sighed before answering. "Did you honestly think that justification was enough to warrant your actions?"

"If someone hurt that kitty cat of yours, would you just let them go?"

"I can't say I would," he answered plainly.

Satan only nodded. "Someone has to make sure no one can hurt them. They are so small that they can't protect themselves…"

Folding his arms, he argued, "You should have been able to sense the girls had my brand on them, and yet you did not stop. Why?"

"Well… because…" she floundered for an answer.

"To send a message?"

"… Basically."

Motioning behind him to the front of the building, he warned, "The only message you've achieved so far is making this entire town, and possibly the surrounding area, aware of your presence."

"So?" she asked, unaware of the issue.

"I'm attempting to establish a foothold here. And if they find out I'm associated with a brash, impudent, impulsive Demon Lord with a short fuse, all of that work will go to waste."

Satan sat silently before dropping her shoulders.

"I apologize for the cats and hope that none of them are injured. But storming a town because you _think_ someone from there _might_ be responsible for their peril is foolish at best, suicidal at worst."

Satan just folded her arms under her bust defiantly. "You think I'm afraid of some humans."

"And what if _I_ hadn't immediately recognized you before killing you?!" Diablo asked, his temper boiling over.

"Then Lady Sinoula would have revived me at the Tomb."

He swiftly realized he was not going to get through to her. "Moving on, what are you plans now?"

"To send a message to Lady Sinoula and then stay here with you and my kittens."

"In that case, you need to do two things before I will allow it."

"Like what?"

"First, you need to apologize to the others, especially Megumin and Mordred."

"Now the Eyesore the I can understand, but the knight got herself involved!"

"She's an Adventurer and a guardian of this town. It's her job to get involved with danger."

Standing with her arms at her sides, Satan argued vehemently, "I only had one target! If she had let me have that Crimson Eyesore none of that would have occurred!"

"I would hope even you can see how stupid that sounds."

Satan sat back down with a pout. Rubbing her head in frustration she finally gave in from his silent gaze. "… Ach, fine…! What's the other thing?"

Nodding in acceptance, he continued. "To stay low until Wiz and I can alter the people's memories enough that they think it was someone else that caused all that damage."

That caught the woman's attention. "Wiz? Wait, Lady Wiz is here?"

"She's the one who beat the stuffing out of you."

"… The one I couldn't see…?"

"Probably," he shrugged. "If you'll do both of those I'll talk with the others and see if they can forgive you."

Satan just clicked her tongue in annoyance. "… Fine… But if I see that Crimson Eyesore with her staff around my kittens, I am _ending _her."

Diablo narrowed his eyes at her. "I will deal with Megumin so that she isn't a problem for your cats again. You are not to harm any of them for any reason, understood?"

"But –" she argued only to be coldly interrupted.

"Am. I. Clear?"

Gulping, she relented with a heavy sigh. "… Fine…"

"Good. Include this in your message to Sinoula. I am busy where I am and won't be going to Nazarick for the time being."

Satan frowned in disappointment but nodded in agreement. "… Right…"

"Good. Before you do that, however. Apologize to the others."

The redhead's eyebrows twitched furiously before accepting her fate. "… Understood…"

* * *

Mordred and Megumin stood silently with a mixture of dumbstruck and anger as Satan kneeled before them for forgiveness.

"Uuhh…" Megumin intoned, not sure how to take what she was seeing.

"I… I would…" Satan mumbled, trying to force the words out, "I would like to…"

Mordred suddenly stood up and put out her arms. "Oh for goddess' sake, just stop already. You're making me feel guilty."

Satan lifted her head to look at the blonde in confusion. "H – Huh?"

"Look, if you work for Diablo, I'm guessing you're probably not completely evil. But that doesn't excuse what you did, which was very, very stupid."

Satan twitched an eyebrow in annoyance at the blonde.

Folding her arms, Mordred continued, "However, nobody died and the biggest trouble you wound up causing was damage to the city."

Satan furrowed her brow in bewilderment at the blonde. "… I… I see… And…?"

Motioning to Megumin, Mordred added, "I don't know about Little Red, but I'm willing to forgive you on two conditions."

'_More conditions…_' Satan grumbled in her mind. "And those are…?"

"Don't _ever_ attack innocent people again unless they are actively putting someone else in danger; though I guess at that point they aren't innocent. Mou, whatever!" Mordred groaned, knocking her train of thought off the rails on her own.

Satan flattened her brow at the strange woman's behavior. "And the second…?"

With an excited grin, Mordred pointed at Satan and urged, "You give me a rematch sometime."

"… Are you masochistic?"

Mordred's grin remained in place. "No, that's the other blonde knight. I'm going to be getting a lot stronger soon. Besides, if I can't take down one Demon Lord, I'm no good as a Knight Princess."

"Oh?" Satan asked, intrigued by her thought process.

Mordred then nudged Megumin on the shoulder. "How about you, Little Red?"

Megumin sat silently for a moment before standing up and staring down at Satan. "… You hurt my friends."

Satan hissed and began to retort, only to be cut off by Megumin.

"But… I know if someone hurt my little sister, even if just by accident, I'd want to set off an explosion in their face."

The red-haired demon stared at her silently, befuddled to her train of thought.

"So… if it makes us even," Megumin continued with a small bow, "I'm sorry if I hurt your kitties."

The scantily clad woman furrowed her brow for a moment before standing up with a sigh. "… Apology accepted."

Megumin smiled slightly in relief.

Turning her attention back to the Mordred, Satan asked with embarrassed curiosity, "Is your… arm better?"

Mordred grinned and flexed her arm. "Almost back to new." Lifting and twisting it, she added with a sense of surprise, "Diablo's pretty good at reattaching limbs."

Satan responded folding her arms proudly. "Of course he is, he's one of the Supreme Beings after all."

"Supreme Beings?" Megumin question. "What's that?"

Parting her lips to speak, Satan was interrupted by Diablo's voice through the door.

"Shouldn't you go check on your cats?"

Satan's entire body tensed and stiffened before she swiftly grabbed her ax and disappeared out the door in the blink of an eye.

Megumin stared at the spot Satan had been just a fraction of a second ago and felt her jaw drop slightly. "… She's… so fast."

"Ya think," Mordred deadpanned. After a moment of quiet she spoke out to the horned man around the corner.

"… Yes?" he asked, coming in front of the doorway.

"I…" Mordred began, stammering, her face reddening slightly. "I want… to ask you something."

Diablo kept his expression placid but felt a twinge of irritation in the back of his mind. '_… I have a bad feeling about this._'

Mordred looked at him uncertainly, as if waiting for him to move the conversation onward.

Relenting with a sigh, he returned, "What is it?"

"M – May I… join your Familia?"

'_How did I guess…?_' he grumbled in his mind. "Why?"

Sighing in frustration, she answered simply. "I want to become stronger."

"Why?" he asked again, with no explanation.

Mordred could only raise an eyebrow at his questioning. "Isn't it obvious? Because it's better to be stronger."

"Not what I meant," he rebuffed as he shook his head. "Why do you want to become stronger?"

"Because it's better than being weak," Mordred answered bluntly, becoming somewhat irritated by his line of questions.

"You're not listening to my question," Diablo added with emphasis. "Why do _you_ want to become stronger? For power? Fame? Riches?"

Mordred's eyes widened slightly as she realized where he was going with his questions. "Why would I need any of those?"

"Then what is _your_ reason?" he asked pointedly, motioning to her directly.

Nodding, she answered, "To protect people. It's my job as a knight and princess."

Diablo narrowed his eyes curiously. "So you're only doing it because you feel you're supposed to?"

Nanana, in another room but still connected to him and listening, chimed in with amusement, '_You're becoming more like a god every day, fufu._'

Diablo huffed in rebuttal. '_Shush. I just realized after this mess I can't just try and keep up the Demon Lord act this whole time now that I've got people relying on me._'

Mordred continued, "That and to make a name for myself. One that won't make people see me as my mother's daughter. It's the reason I left Lautreamont after all."

"Oh?" Diablo rejoined with interest.

Mordred flinched subtly as she realized the situation she put herself in but eventually decided lying was not a suitable option. "My full name is Mordred Pendragon Lautreamont."

Diablo's brain stopped working for a moment. "… Eh?"

Reaching into her nearby, heavily damaged armor, she pulled an intricate medallion bearing the head of a lion on its front and displayed it. "If you don't believe me, this is the royal emblem of the Lautreamont Knight Kingdom. My mother, Arturia, is its queen and ruler."

"… Ah."

Megumin, confused, asked a simple question. "I thought Lautreamont had three rulers."

"It does. My mother sits at the top, as the overall ruler and head of the military. The other two handle political and diplomatic endeavors, with my mother getting involved when needed, and incidents relating to magic."

Megumin tilted her head in further confusion. "Um… wouldn't the political one be the ruler?"

"No. She is the ruler of Lautreamont because the Dragon Gear chose her. The same as Lautreamont's seven War Maidens, or Vanadis."

"Ah…"

Diablo raised an eyebrow in thought. '_Vanadis? I'll need to look into that later._' "I trust your answer. But that still leaves why you have chosen my Familia over any other."

Shrugging with a weak smirk, Mordred rebuffed, "I don't know of any other deity that managed to defeat one Demon Lord, let alone multiple. And that Crusader… we should be around the same Level, but she managed to actually push Satan back."

"I see," he replied before folding his arms in thought. "Very well. But before I solidify your membership, I wish to test your skills."

Mordred frowned slightly in frustration. "Fighting Satan wasn't enough?"

'_I would think it is,_' Nanana replied.

Diablo argued, "Combat isn't all a Familia focuses on. I want to personally see your teamwork abilities. After that I will offer you my seal."

"Right!" Mordred replied with vigor before wincing as she remembered something and looked at her armor. "Although… I'm going to need some new armor first."

"Do you mind if I use your old armor as a base?"

Mordred just shrugged. "It's just scrap metal at this point, so go ahead."

"Good. Any preference in color or design? Material?"

Mordred folded her arms under her significant bust in thought. "As close as you to can my original armor would be preferred."

"Understood."

Nanana snickered mischievously. '_She is so getting bikini armor._'

'_Shut it,_' Diablo snapped back.

* * *

In the back of the building, with the remains of Mordred's armor laid out on a table, Diablo sighed as he scratched his head looking it over.

"Well?" Nanana questioned.

"Hm… there's not much here that I can actually salvage. The helmet and torso are completely wrecked. I might be able to salvage the arms and legs if I use pieces from the other two."

"So bikini armor then?"

Twitching an eyebrow, Diablo pointed to it and argued, "If I enchant it, then it will offer full body protection.

"Like the one Lilietta wore?" Rem asked, standing next to them.

"… Kind of."

"Right."

After a short moment, Diablo turned to Rem in surprise. "What are you doing in here?"

"I wanted to help with Mordred's armor."

Diablo stared silently at her as her tail swished slowly behind her. "Ah…"

"She helped us out, and I wanted to return the favor."

Sighing after a moment he just shrugged. "Very well. I could use an assistant."

Rem nodded with a small smile.

* * *

Some hours later, Mordred finished putting on her armor and looked at herself in the mirror with thought. In addition to the red sash wrapped around her ample bust, black briefs that hugged her form tightly, red and gold cloth skirt that covered her front and extended down to her shins, and thigh-high black stockings with red bands, the armor that was left were two large, pointed pauldrons, two long, spiked gauntlets, two large shields hung at her waist, and knee-high armored boots.

Diablo frowned slightly at her reaction to the revealing uniform as she tested her movements. "That was all I could salvage."

Mordred turned to him with a grin. "It's perfect! If it's anything like what that girl was wearing, it should provide me full protection, but it's so much easier to move in than my armor!" she exclaimed as she threw a few punches and kicks in practice. "To be honest, I'm not that fond of the kind of clothing I have to wear in the palace. This kinda stuff that lets me breathe and move better is much more my style."

Diablo just stared silently at her, not sure how to respond. "… Ah."

Nanana, meanwhile, snickered slyly nearby.

'_Shut it…_'

'_Told ya it's what you're going to be making._'

'_Please shut up…_' Diablo tried to redirect the conversation before matters got too out of hand. "We'll go on a quest tomorrow. It's far too late for one now."

Mordred nodded as she left the store. "Right. Meet you at the Guild hall."

Diablo frowned slightly as she left. '_… If anyone from Lautreamont sees that outfit and learns I made it… I am so dead…_'

'_Or your business will start booming._'

He just groaned at the impending chaos.

* * *

Diablo sighed as he sat on the edge of the bed in the room he had claimed as his own.

In front of him, Nanana, Shera, and a few of the other girls were having a heated argument.

"Hey, that's no fair! Why can't I stay here!?" Shera demanded to know.

Pointing at the horned man sitting silently on the sidelines, Nanana retorted, "Because, we don't need you and Diablo doing anything in the night. You'll share a room with Rem and deal with it."

Shera trembled before tears began welling up in her eyes.

'_Look, I don't think it's that big of a –'_ Diablo began to argue, only to get cut off midsentence.

'_Of course you don't think it's a problem with her boobs smushed up against you all night!_'

Diablo frowned slightly in consideration. '_Are you… jealous?_'

Nanana winced as her entire face lit up. '_Y – You can't be serious!_'

'_Holy shit you are!_'

Nanana looked at him with a growing temper before she suddenly went quiet and reached a hand out to Megumin. "… Megumin, can I have your staff?" she asked, eerily calm.

Megumin, too disturbed to argue, just nodded. "Um… sure?"

* * *

In the back room downstairs, Lilietta looked over the vast array of outfits Wiz had in a large closet.

"All of your clothes are so pretty… Did you make them yourself?"

Wiz responded with a shake of her head. "No, I actually had help from some friends."

"Really?"

"Yeah, the –"

The conversation was interrupted and cut off by the sound of a loud crash from upstairs.

"Wh – What was that…?" Lilietta stammered in worry.

Wiz could only must a weak sigh. "I would advise you to ignore it."

* * *

Upstairs, Nanana slammed the door to Diablo's room shut. "There, now the bed issue is solved." She then handed Megumin back her staff, the girl's face locked in a permanent expression of awe. "That thing is surprisingly sturdy."

"Y – Yeah…" was the best the Crimson Mage could muster.

Smiling pleasantly, Nanana made her way back to her room. "Now, we've got a long day ahead of us, so let's get some rest."

The others merely watched her leave in silent disbelief.

* * *

The next morning, Shera took a deep yawn as she sat at the table with everyone else. "I didn't get any sleep last night…"

An annoyed Rem rebuffed, "Maybe if you didn't roll around so much that wouldn't happen…"

"Well I can't get comfortable if I'm not holding on to Diablo…"

Diablo just glowered at his food. '_Would be nice if I had a bed to sleep in… Too bad I don't…_'

Nanana sat beside him eating her grilled fish without a worry.

"So what kind of quest are we going to do?" Megumin question.

Diablo gave it some thought while stretching out the kinks in his shoulder. "Probably an exploration or gather quest."

"Oh…" the girl mumbled in disappointment.

Leaning back in his chair, Diablo explained, "I heard from everyone what Mordred can do in battle. I want to see what she can do otherwise before letting her join."

The little wizard tilted her head in thought. "How come?"

"With Nanana and Darkness we already have the strength and defense for the party. You provide long range magic support, Shera can attack from distance, and Rem is the fastest. We have several other roles that need filling."

Aqua sat silently shooting him an irritated glare.

"Including a healer."

Aqua's glare was joined by a twitching eyebrow.

Aqua finally slammed her hands on the table angrily and stood up. "Are you_ trying_ to piss me off?!"

Diablo turned her in mild surprise. "What are you talking about?"

"You are!"

"I beg your pardon?"

"You keep saying we need a healer!"

"We do."

Aqua's temper was reaching its limit. "_Me_! I can use healing magic!"

Nanana dryly commented, "The only thing you can heal is a dry throat and even that's debatable."

Aqua growled gutturally at the purple-haired woman, Diablo remarked during their feud, "When you're all done playing around, we need to get to the Guild."

Darkness nodded slowly in agreement.

* * *

Mordred stood against a wall next to the Guild hall's main door with her arms crossed and an annoyed frown on her face.

"Hi Mordred," Megumin greeted as she ran up to her. "You look… angrier than normal."

Mordred hummed as she heard them and tried to soften her expression. "It's nothing. Just these pests around here."

"Pests?" Shera asked innocently as she looked around.

Mordred motioned to a few men that walked by, their faces contorted perversely at her. "Men like them all day. Constantly approaching me like drunken fools, or asking me how much I cost."

Diablo stiffened and felt a cold chill down his spine.

Mordred put her hands behind her head with a huff. "What do they take me for? Some lowly sell-sword?"

Diablo stared at her in wonderment.

'_That's adorable…_' Nanana cooed with amusement.

'_And concerning…_'

"So what job are we taking?" Mordred asked as she stepped away from the wall.

"I will decide after looking at the request board."

Mordred nodded with anticipation. "Right. Hope it's something I can really go all out on."

* * *

Inside the Guild hall, Diablo made his way toward the request when he noticed Sylvie looking around frantically before seeing him and sprinting over. "Something wrong Sylvie?"

"Sort of," she answered grimly. "I got a request from the main Guild office to give to someone here in town."

"Oh? What is it?"

Sylvie looked around the crowded building in suspicion and leaned close to him. "It's best if we discuss this in my office."

"Okay?" he responded, confused and concerned.

* * *

Sitting in her high-backed chair behind her desk, Sylvie posited, "I'm sure you remember the attempted Fallen incursion?"

Diablo and the others, sitting on the sofas in front of her desk, nodded.

"Of course," the horned man answered plainly.

"Well it didn't come completely out of nowhere."

"Oh?" Diablo responded, intrigued.

"There's a reason Faltra tends to be safe from monster attacks."

"Celes' barrier?" Rem asked matter-of-factly.

"Not exactly."

"Barrier?" Aqua asked, befuddled.

Rem explained the question. "Celes uses her magic to maintain a powerful barrier around the city that prevents monsters from getting in under normal circumstances."

Sylvie nodded in agreement. "Indeed. But that's only a precaution, not the secret to Faltra's relative safety. A final failsafe incase the true deterrent went missing."

"Missing?" Shera asked, completely befuddled, as were others in the room.

Sylvie nodded grimly. "Yes. There's a mountain near the city, inside the mountain is a cave, and deep inside that cave, an immensely powerful dragon known as Veldora is sealed inside, and has been for the past three hundred years. Or used to…"

Diablo raised an eyebrow in thought. "Used to?"

"About two weeks ago, Veldora's presence vanished from the area. As a result, much stronger monsters than normal have begun appearing around Faltra. The head of the Guild's main branch wants a team of Adventurers sent to investigate the cave he used to live in and figure out the truth. And whoever we send needs to be careful. Veldora was a subordinate to the Fell Dragon Grima. That's why I'm requesting your aid."

"Understood. The requirements of the quest?" he asked as he looked over the paper.

"Investigate Veldora's cave, see if it's actually true that he's gone, and try to find out what happened."

"Right. Sounds simple enough for my Familia and me. Should be a good test quest for Mordred as well."

"Just be careful. Even though few powerful monsters appeared because of Veldora, there are some that took shelter in his cave that aren't pushovers."

Mordred grinned with excitement and slammed her fists together. "Perfect. Let's get going!"

* * *

With that, the group made their way out of the city and towards the cave to the northeast.

As they traveled, Diablo noticed Mordred occasionally glancing at him curiously. Eventually he was unable to handle the awkward glances any further and asked. "Is something the matter?"

"Not exactly. I've never heard of a god going on any quests with their Followers."

"I'm not lazy," he replied bluntly.

"Ah. I'd heard most of the gods came to Gekkai out of sheer boredom."

"I did not. I'm also not a god."

'_Finally accepted your role?_' Nanana asked with a smirk. Deciding to just go with it, she addressed Mordred. "He's not just a god really. But a Demon Lord as well."

"Really?" the blonde wondered as she looked him over before shrugging. "I suppose he is a little short for a Draph."

"Oy!" he snapped back, only getting a laugh from the woman.

With a sly grin, Nanana added, "I have it on good authority he makes up for it."

Mordred nodded with a smile. "Indeed, he does seem rather powerful."

Nanana stared at her in mild disbelief before grinning deviously. '_… Oh this is going to be so much fun._'

'_Don't taint her, we don't need the royal family giving us trouble,_' Diablo warned.

* * *

After several more hours of the walking, the group reached the dense forest around the cave.

As they walked through it, Diablo noticed Rem constantly looking around, her ears practically swiveling all the way around. "What are you doing?"

"This area of the forest is said to be home to a large group of Goblins," she answered as she kept looking.

Diablo just raised an eyebrow in further confusion. "That will be useful later. Though, why are you so concerned?"

"Are Goblins really that big a deal?" Nanana asked with a shrug, resulting in Rem, Darkness, and Megumin giving her a deadpan stare of disbelief. "… What?"

Darkness answered with a hint of her usual excitement, "They're some of the most twisted, vile, and despicable creatures around."

Diablo almost could not believe his ears. "… Goblins are?"

"As in… the little green weaklings with clubs?" Nanana replied, motioning with her hands only a meter off the ground.

Rem explained, "Alone, Goblins aren't an issue. Even encountering two or three isn't a problem. It's when you run into large groups that their true power is seen."

"I still do not see the problem you are complaining about. Besides, what you're describing sound like Imps."

"There's a difference?" Mordred rebuffed with a hint of disgust.

Diablo nodded. "Imps are vile and cruel, and attack in groups and at any opportunity. Goblins are mostly docile and only attack when provoked. Imps also live in caves, whilst Goblins stick to forests to hide better. Provided we don't startle any of them, any Goblins in this forest will likely leave us alone. So no explosions."

Megumin pouted at the very pointed comment.

* * *

Soon the group reached the edge of the large mountain and what appeared to be the entrance of the cave, marked by a massive metal door.

Shera tilted her head back to look up at the top of the large structure. "… That's a big door…"

"Indeed…" Mordred noted in awed agreement.

"Do you think it's locked?" Megumin questioned.

"Only one way to find out!" Aqua cheered before rushing at the door, only for Diablo to grab her by the shoulder. "Eh?"

Diablo pulled her back and stepped up to the door, placing his hand against and focusing.

After several silent seconds, Aqua quirked an eyebrow in confusion. "What's he doing?"

"Checking it for traps," Nanana warned.

The blue-haired goddess flinched in realization. "… Oh…"

Looking away from the door and at the others, he explained, "There are no traps, however there is a Sixth Tier seal holding the door shut. Will be effortless to remove." Placing his hand directly on the door, he began flowing mana into it to remove the seal.

The door began sparking and glowing, the light growing brighter and brighter, until eventually a large, ornate pentagram appeared on its surface before shattering into pieces and vanishing.

'_Just as I thought…_'

'_What do you mean?_'

'_That seal is identical to one of the spells in my arsenal._'

'_Ah…_'

After waiting a moment for any possible side effects Diablo pushed the door open, resulting in a gust of wind from the door having been sealed for centuries.

"Pah!" Shera suddenly gasped.

"SherAAA?!" Diablo exclaimed as he saw her dress blown up over head exposing her bright white panties.

Rem growled quietly.

Megumin handed him a small cloth.

"What's this for?"

"Your nose is bleeding."

"… Ah," he muttered as he took it and wiped his nose.

As the group headed inside, Diablo glanced to the side as something caught his attention. "Hm… odd…"

"Hey, Diablo, we need to get moving," Aqua urged.

"Right, right."

As he walked away, a small face popped up over the edge of a boulder.

* * *

As they walked through the large caverns, Aqua looked around at the high ceiling and huge walls. "This cave is huge…"

"Yeah…" Nanana muttered as she looked around.

Shera stopped and looked to the side, cooing in awe.

"Shera?" Diablo wondered, trying to see what she was looking at.

"Sparkly…"

Diablo peered over her shoulder and saw a small collection of iridescent, multicolored metallic stones.

Nanana and Diablo both stared at it in shock, Nanana questioning what she saw. "… Is that what I think it is?"

"Magic Ore…" Diablo confirmed, in equal shock.

"Magivore?" Shera questioned.

"I didn't think it was real…" Rem mumbled in awe.

Diablo explained, "Very rare and powerful ore for making weapons and armor capable of self-repair. The weapons they make are also nearly immune to heat, with a melting point almost three times of normal steel, are excessively durable, and have the potential to damage the mana of a creature directly. Don't bother trying to memorize the effects of mixing it with other ores."

"If it's that great, let's take it!" Aqua urged.

Diablo sighed and grabbed her shoulder, again. "It isn't that simple."

"Really?"

"For one, this ore forms when regular steel is exposed to high amounts of extremely dense mana for extended periods of time. So at the very least this confirms Veldora was here."

"And…?" Aqua prodded, not seeing his point.

"Due to its unique properties, you need special tools to extract it. A normal pickaxe or just pulling it out of the ground won't work."

"Ah…" the blue-haired goddess lamented.

"It's so pretty…" Shera cooed as she looked at one of the chunks of ore before grabbing hold of it and pulling, causing it to come right out of the ground. "Lookie!"

Nanana almost face-faulted at the sight. '_Did… Did she just…?_'

Diablo nodded slowly, as if he did not even believe it himself. '_… She did._'

Shera giddily proceeded to pluck more and more chunks of the ore straight out of the dirt.

Rem stood in disbelief with her ears twitching. "Just… how… why…?"

Standing up with an armful of the brightly colored rocks, Shera then noticed the group's puzzled and shocked expressions, looking at them in confusion of her own. "Huh? What's wrong? Do I have something on my face?"

"How are you just picking it up so casually?!"

Shera blinked a few times, thinking about her question. Setting down the chunks she held, she reached down and plucked another chunk of ore from the ground. "Like that?" she responded, not sure what she was supposed to answer.

The others merely stared in wonderment.

Aqua decided to try her luck and went for a long piece of magic ore and gripped it firmly and began to pull. Jamming her feet on the ground she pulled as hard as she could but was unable to make the stone even budge. Eventually she lost her grip and went tumbling back against a large boulder.

"Saw that coming," Nanana deadpanned.

Aqua quickly got to her feet with a vehement snarl, pointing at Shera in dismay. "How come she can pull that stuff right out of the ground but it won't even budge for me!?"

"No clue."

"It's not fair!" she huffed before kicking a small rock in a tantrum that fell down a nearby chasm, bouncing off the ground several times before landing with a thud that did not sound remotely like stone.

Mordred tensed as she reached for her blade.

Diablo waved a hand as he incanted, "Candlelight," resulting in a large ball of light forming in the air that showed what the stone had hit. A large, bipedal, crimson dinosaur with two large black horns that, from a rough estimate, was nearly eight meters tall. "… Aqua, don't turn around…"

Aqua blinked in confusion. "Why not…?"

"Just don't, and come toward me."

Aqua gulped and, despite the warnings, turned around and saw the massive beast, resulting in a panicked scream.

Her shrieking inadvertently awakened the beast, growling and snarling as it stood up.

'_Dammit!_' Diablo cursed in his mind.

"Way to go, Useless!" Nanana chastised as Aqua scrambled towards the group.

"How else am I supposed to react to seeing something like that!?"

"He told you not to look!"

"That's basically begging me to look!"

"What are you, five?!"

"Both of you shut up and get ready to fight!" Diablo ordered.

"Okay, get to work monster bait!"

The beast reared back its head and released a deafening howl that echoed all the harsher in the caves.

Rem covered her ears in pain. "So… loud…!"

"Yeah," Nanana groaned in discomfort as well.

Mordred flipped her sword into a reverse grip and then threw it like a spear, causing it to embed itself deep in the roof of the beast's mouth, causing it to shriek in pain.

Nanana watched in disbelief. "… Well that happened…"

However, the monster managed to slam its jaw shut with enough force that the blade snapped off the hilt.

"Oh come on!" Mordred hollered.

Suddenly, the red-skinned creature reared its head back and took a deep breath.

Rem's eyes shot wide as she realized what was going on. "It's going to spit ash!"

Diablo hissed in frustration as he thought of ways to handle the situation. '_We can't get to cover at this distance quick enough… any defense spells would take one second too long to cast…_'

'_Then go on the attack!_' Nanana urged desperately.

Mordred suddenly exclaimed, "Fire! Someone use fire magic!"

Diablo clicked his tongue in frustration before aiming the palm of his hand at the beast. '_I don't like the risk of doing this, but I don't have time to cast!_' He envisioned pure flame in his mind, concentrated as much mana as he could at his palm, and almost instantly a jet of fire shot from his hand at the monster as it released a cloud of black smoke.

The two attacks met and resulted in a massive conflagration that lit up the entire cavern and blinded everyone inside for several seconds. However, when the light died down and the smoke cleared, the titanic beast stood motionless with only a burnt, smoldering stump where its head used to be.

Megumin stared at the headless monster which collapsed moments later. "Whoa… was that even a spell?"

"N – No… a – ahem, no," Diablo stuttered before clearing his throat and trying to save face, "It was pure magic."

Megumin looked at him in wonder. "No spell at all?! Not even a name!?"

"No," he responded with a proud smirk. "Such is the power of raw mana. Now, we need to find Veldora's lair deeper in the cave."

Nanana shot him an amused smirk. '_You say that and yet you weren't even sure it would work._'

'_Well I needed to try something or we were all going to become its food._'

"Right!" Shera answered with an emphatic nod.

Diablo looked at her for a moment as he realized she was still holding on to the chunks of Magic Ore. "… Shera, give those to me."

Tilting her head, Shera nodded and approached him before a small portal opened up that he dropped the ores into.

"Now, let's go."

* * *

The group spent quite a long time traveling through the cave, following the twists and turns trying to get to the center of the cavern where Veldora's seal was meant to be, when Nanana pointed out something the others had noticed.

"Aside from that Bloodsaurus at the entrance, there's been nothing in here."

"Indeed…" Diablo responded with suspicion. However, as he walked, he noticed a forlorn expression on Mordred's face. "Is something the matter?"

Mordred held up the smashed remains of her sword. "My blade is trashed."

"Forging you a new one won't be difficult," he responded confidently.

"Even so…" she answered, as though there was more to the blade.

Sighing, Diablo urged, "Let us just see to the dragon's seal. We will handle the sword later."

After a few more silent minutes, Aqua wondered aloud, "… Hey, do you think the stories are true?"

"Which ones?" Megumin asked.

"That dragons hoard mountains of treasure?"

Diablo argued, "Even if they were, this dragon was not here by choice, so he likely had none."

Nanana nodded to herself. "Yeah, you're a greed goddess."

"Am not!" Aqua argued desperately.

"The first thing you thought about with a dragon chamber was treasure."

Aqua flinched back with a huff.

Rem added, "She has a point."

Diablo glanced back over his shoulder and watched them argue. '_Good grief…_'

"I'm not a greed goddess…" Aqua pouted.

"Yes you are," Nanana jabbed.

"Enough," Diablo interjected, annoyed. "I don't care what kind of goddess you are so long as you make yourself useful. Now let us go and confirm the fate of the dragon."

* * *

After several hours of searching, the group finally reached a massive open area in the cavern next to a lake, at the edge of which sat a deep, perfectly round hole in the ground.

"Well… this isn't good…" Nanana thought aloud.

"Shera, what do you see?" Diablo questioned, Rem and the others looking at him confused.

"There's mana everywhere, and it's really thick…" the elf noted in slight worry. "And there's little globs of something all over the place…" Narrowing her eyes, her ears twitched curiously. "Slime?"

"Hold on, ignoring that," Rem interjected in disbelief, "you can see mana?"

"Um… yeah? Can't everybody?"

"No!" Rem, Aqua, Darkness, and Megumin all shouted in unison.

"Weird…" Confused, she turned to Diablo. "Can you?"

"No, that's why I asked for what you see."

Shera blinked a few times in thought before her eyes lit up. "So I'm more useful than Rem!"

Rem twitched an eyebrow as her tail puffed up, Mordred raising an eyebrow in confusion at the whole scene.

"Something the matter?" Diablo questioned, seeing Mordred's puzzled expression.

"It's really that rare of a talent?"

"No," he replied simply.

"Ah, that –" she began, only to be interrupted as Diablo had not finished speaking.

"That implies it's something a percentage of the population can have, when, as far as I can tell, it is something unique to Shera that I have never witnessed before."

Mordred's lips curled in bewilderment at his answer.

"So what now?" Aqua wondered.

"We return to Sylvie and report our findings," Diablo explained.

* * *

**FIN. Thus ends the eighth chapter. I hope you all enjoyed this one just as much, if not more, than the previous chapter. As usual, if you did, reviews are greatly appreciated. If you were confused, unsure, or simply had questions on anything, do let me know and I will do what I can to address them in the next reviewer response section. If your query is on the source of various characters, I would suggest a review to that end, as making a list of each character at the end is rather time consuming. If you did not enjoy the chapter, a review is fine, though I would appreciate you having some grasp of the English language, as well as a point. Regardless, that is all I have to say for now, so until next time, bye-bye!**

**Oh, and also, since a lot of people might have questions, I am not using the standard version of Mordred, I am using the Lancer Prince Mordred because she is busty.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter IX**

**Hello and greetings! Yes, more Demon Lord's Adventurers; hey, it is what has my interest at the moment. You guys work fast, at time of writing, only a couple hours, and it is already filled with reviews. I love it. That said, it seems that the majority of you are enjoying the story so far, I hope to keep you entertained in the future. As for this chapter, as usual, let me know if you liked it with a review. I would like to thank Bakuto Masaki for joining me on this venture into insanity that is my brain. But, with that being said, on to the reviewer responses.**

**AscendedHumanity: I most certainly do, and that number will keep going up for the time being.**

**METALHELLSPWN: Yeah, those From Software games are a bitch and a half. Which is why I don't play them, I like easy mode.**

**Thanos69: All of the above.**

**dfelfskelkr: Hey, whatever works.**

**Skull Flame: Liquor most definitely.**

**It generally is.**

**Lawoi: Ah. I haven't gotten that far in the novels in terms of actual reading. I've only just gotten past where the anime ended.**

**I don't recall mentioning her at any point in the story.**

**Fortitude501: A) I'm not working so I don't really have a whole lot to do at the moment.**

**B) It's the story that's got my passion the most right now.**

**Armored Spirits just got an update earlier, Tales of Neptunia is getting an update soon, and as for the rest I can't make any promises. As far as Gremory's Guardian, it's getting to the point I'm half tempted to turn reviews off or something similar, since all the slime has seeped up in that story.**

**Messiah of authors: You're certainly a perceptive one. There's nothing wrong with it, per se, I just like big tits. And this gives me Mordred and big tits at the same time. Just like using Lancer Arturia, which I use almost exclusively when it comes to Arturia in my stories. Which sword? If you mean Gram, I can't say. If you mean the sword he has as Heathcliff, he likely won't use that until fighting as Heathcliff.**

**ObsidianUnknown66: Yep, because boobies! It wasn't multiple slimes so much as pieces of a whole one, like a slug trail. Nah, Sinoula has her on a short leash. Aqua, when done right, is a treat.**

**Well here it is!**

**correnhimself316: Well I can assure you whatever she gets will be plenty powerful. And yes, Lancer Mordred is something amazing indeed. I can promise you that there will be others who appear, however that doesn't include every single one you mentioned.**

**15songoku: Thanks. Don't get too used to it, sadly. As once the beervirus is gone I'll have to go back to work.**

**This is very true.**

**Don't worry, lemons will be coming shortly. Pun very much intended. Indeed you will.**

**You're missing a few, but that's because I haven't made many overt references to them, or you didn't catch the rather blatant ones I left, which is fine. However, I won't say precisely which ones, as it would be spoilers for future plot developments.**

**Phew, that was a lot, keep them coming! On to the main event!**

* * *

"So what now?" Aqua wondered.

"We return to Sylvie and report our findings," Diablo explained. Turning to the side, he noticed Shera poking some of the leftover globs of slime on one of the plants. "Even pieces of a Slime can still be alive, it is unwise to touch them."

Shera, not hearing him or outright ignoring him, plucked the glob of blue goo off the iridescent leaf and ate it, humming to herself happily. "Mm… tasty…"

Diablo twitched an eyebrow and chided, "No more."

"But –" she began to argue, only to get cut off as Diablo pulled her to her feet.

"No more. That's an order."

"Aw…"

"I want to see what is in it first. If it's harmless we might be able to sell it if it tastes that good, and you can have some more then."

Nanana raised a concerned eyebrow. "Is that greed goddess rubbing off on you?"

Diablo cocked an eyebrow as he looked at her in mild annoyance. "No. Money is simply required to do anything of import."

Aqua, very annoyed, interjected, "That _water_ goddess is right here, you know."

Before Aqua and Nanana could into another argument, Diablo got the blue-haired goddess' attention with a new subject.

"Yes?"

"You say you know healing spells?"

"A few," she answered with a smirk.

"Next time the rest of you have a battle, try focusing on using them."

She blinked in thought at his suggest. "R – Right…"

* * *

As the group made their way back through the tunnels towards the exit, Nanana kept noticing the numerous glowing herbs that dotted the landscape of the cave, eventually deciding to bring it up. "Hey, Momo."

"What?" he questioned, stopping to look back at her.

Pointing to a few of the plants, she asked, "Aren't these Hipokte herbs?"

Diablo walked up next to her and picked one of the small, unassuming plants and examined it closely. "Hm… I believe so."

"Hippo tea herb?" Shera questioned, completely butchering the name.

'_Cute…_' Diablo cooed in his head, earning him an incredulous glance from Nanana.

"Aren't they used in crafting potions?" Rem asked, sniffing the one Diablo held and recoiling slightly.

Diablo nodded in affirmation as he dropped a few of the plants into his Inventory. "Yes. In crafting many of the purest potions possible. One of these can cover almost all of the ingredients I would need."

"Well there's a whole field of 'em over there," Nanana noted before pointing to the side.

Diablo looked where she was point and, sure enough, there was a large field, no less than fifty meters across, covered in a thick blanket of the herbs. He could not keep his jaw from hitting the ground. '_Whaaat?! What kind of mana did that Veldora have to produce this much Hipokte and Magic Ore?!_'

Nanana put her hands up in dismayed defeat. '_Not a freaking clue… She did say he was a subordinate to Grima…_'

'_This is the kind of supply drop you would expect for an event boss!_'

'_Maybe he never got implemented into the game?_'

Diablo managed to calm himself somewhat before putting a hand on his chin. '_Perhaps…_'

Shera glanced down and saw more globs of the blue slime on the ground. "Huh… more slime bits…"

Diablo grabbed her by the shoulder and prevented her from reaching out to it. "No more snacking."

"Aww…"

Sighing, he reached into his Inventory and pulled out a small bag of biscuits and handed it to her. "Here, eat these if you're still that hungry."

"Ooh…" she cooed before opening it and getting the fresh-baked smell of sweets. "Ooh! So sweet!" she exclaimed as she took a bite of one.

'_So are you…_' he mumbled in his mind.

Nanana just shot him a wry smirk. '_If you're not careful you'll start drooling._'

Twitching an eyebrow, he resisted the urge to knock her on the head.

"Huh…" Rem hummed in thought as she looked around.

"What is it, Rem?" Diablo asked.

"There are some holes where those slime bits are…"

"Holes?" he wondered as he walked up beside her. "Hm…"

"Do you think it's acidic?"

"Eep!" Shera squeaked in fear.

"That's why you shouldn't go around eating everything that looks good."

"If it was acidic there would be signs of it," Diablo interjected.

"Then what do you think the holes are from?"

"A perfect indentation of what was once Magic Ore buried in the ground."

Rem gasped slightly. "Wait… there's hundreds, possibly thousands of these holes. How much did it eat?"

"No idea. And there are still a lot of ore and herbs left over. We need to gather the herbs before something or someone else finds them."

"Right," Darkness nodded.

* * *

The group began picking and pulling the herbs from the ground, careful to avoid damaging the fragile plants. Handing bushels of it to Diablo, who deposited it into his Inventory.

After nearly an hour of pulling, Megumin slumped back and sighed. "There's so much of it… and it all just vanishes into Diablo's portal."

"Yeah," Mordred muttered as Diablo dropped another bunch of the herbs into his Inventory.

As they worked, Megumin suddenly felt a tingle in the back of her mind and immediately stood up, turned around, and shot a small Explosion from her staff.

"Megumin…" Diablo grumbled.

"I had a bad feeling…"

Narrowing his eyes in thought, he turned to where she had fired the attack and saw the burnt corpse of a small, hairless, green-skinned creature. "We need to leave, now."

"Why?" Darkness asked curiously.

Diablo just ordered, "Give me any herbs and ore you've gathered and head for the exit, immediately."

"Okay?"

Nanana frowned in thought before looking at Diablo. '_What's got you so spooked? It's just Imps. You can wipe them out with a single spell. Heck, you might even be able to get them to kill one another._'

Diablo argued, '_That isn't _just _an Imp. If it was just your average Imp its body would've been turned to ashes. Instead, it remained intact enough to identify from here._'

'_And?_'

'_It's hard to explain. There's something telling me that if we stay here too much longer, something extremely bad is going to –_'

Their conversation was cut short as loud screams of terror and pain flooded into the cave.

Without wasting a second for words, Diablo took off towards the source.

"M – Momo!" Nanana called out before she and the others ran after him.

They ran for several long seconds before, as they rounded a sharp corner, Rem caught a glimpse of something ahead.

"Hey, there's a light up ahead!"

Taking the incentive, Diablo kicked off the ground and launched forward. The scene he stumbled upon was the stuff of nightmares.

Dozens of small, pointy-eared, green-skinned, grotesque creatures of various sizes filled the small cave.

Huddled against one corner of the wall, a petite blonde girl with bright blue eyes filled with tears of fear wearing white robes accented with blue and gold, holding a long staff with rings on it.

Surrounded by a small group of the detestable creatures was a young woman with short, wild red hair and green eyes behind glasses, wearing a green dress with a pointed brown hat and matching cape, both of which were in tatters as the monsters around her pulled at the clothing.

Lastly, a girl with long black hair and matching onyx eyes, her clothing almost all stripped from her body by a large monster.

"Get… off me…!" the black-haired girl demanded desperately as the large Imp stomped on her leg.

A smaller Imp cackled madly before looking up and noticing the larger one holding the girl down was suddenly missing its head.

Diablo flicked his hand and Gram appeared in an instant. "Damned Imps!" Swinging it with all his force, the Imps surrounding the pinned woman were suddenly cleaved in half, their bodies falling limply to the floor. "Each and every one of you damned cretins are dying here!"

The redhead managed to kick one of the Imps away from as they were distracted, only for another one to grab a long sword fashioned from bone, her eyes paling as she watched it raise the weapon. "No… stay away…!"

Before it had a chance to react, Nanana came flying in with a diving kick that sent the monster flying against a wall so hard it splattered like a tomato. Pumping a fist, she exclaimed, "Always fun smashing things like that!"

One of the Imps behind hooted before diving at her, only for one of Megumin's shots to hit it and explode violently.

The redhead looked at Megumin in disbelief. "How…? No chant…? What's even going on…?"

Seeing more of the creatures running at them, Diablo raised a hand with his palm facing them. "Dark Bullet Storm!" In a black flash of light, a barrage of energy spheres shot out like a shotgun, ripping through the green-skinned horrors as they collapsed onto the ground. Seeing two of the large ones getting back up to try again, Diablo moved his hand aside for another attack. "Mass Grasp Heart!"

The two creatures stopped in their tracks before Diablo slammed his fist shut, the monsters coughing up blood before collapsing on the ground.

He noticed one more small Imp trying to escape down a hole. "Shera."

Without pause, the blonde elf picked up a pebble nearby and chucked it, hitting the small cretin in the side of the head, killing it.

Rem stared at the elf in disbelief.

Ensuring that no more of them were arriving, Diablo stowed Gram and then turned to the three frightened girls. "Are you three alright?"

"Y – Yes…" the blonde answered shakily as she came back to her senses.

The red-haired woman sat up, groaning and looked around at the scene. "What the hell is this?! Why did we have so much trouble with Goblins…?"

"Because these weren't Goblins," Diablo chided. "They're Imps. Goblins live in the forests, staying as far away as possible from any caves that may house Imps."

The black-haired girl slumped onto her knees silently before looking down at her unclothed form as the reality of the situation finally set in. "Th – Those things… they were… they were going to…"

Sighing, Diablo pulled a large coat out of his Inventory and handed it to the girl, who hastily wrapped it around herself. "It's not as durable as armor, but it's something to wear."

"Th – Thank you…" she stammered out.

Looking out over the trio as they seemed to slowly come out of the shock, he asked, "What were rookie Adventurers even doing here in the first place?"

The bespectacled woman hissed her words out, "We came here with that son of a bitch…"

"Oh?"

"Some big shot from Faltra's main city, claimed he was sent by the goddess or some shit."

The blonde weakly stood up, making her way over to her friends.

Clenching her torn cloak tightly, she whimpered, "As soon as those… things swarmed us he took off like a baby."

Aqua shrugged her arms with a hiss of disgust. "Huh. Must be some shitty goddess that chose that reincarnate."

Nanana just shot the blue-haired goddess an incredulous look before Diablo interjected, "Tell me, did he have two other women with him?"

Nodding, the redhead answered, "Yeah, but he sent them to get supplies while we came here."

Diablo just sighed as he turned his attention back to the black-haired woman. "I would chastise you for following that fool, but I can see he has innate charisma. Regardless, it's over now."

"Th – There won't be anymore… right…?" the frightened blonde asked.

Diablo shook his head in response. "No. The rest were likely frightened away. Regardless, we need to get you three out of here before something worse shows up."

The girl with only the coat on her tried to stand up but stumbled as her leg gave out from under her, though Diablo managed to catch her.

"I don't expect you to stand any time soon," he argued before pulling a potion from his Inventory. "Here. It won't get rid of the pain entirely but it will heal it faster."

"Thank you…"

As she drank it down, Diablo turned to the group. "Now, who are you three?"

The redhead spoke up first. "Moluka, Copper Wizard."

"P – Prelsina, a Copper Priestess," introduced the blonde.

Finishing the potion with a sigh, the black-haired girl introduced herself. "Fikuma, Copper Fighter." Clenching her fists, she snarled, "Not that it did me any good…"

"Why on Earth did the Guild let a bunch of Coppers come to a place like this?" Diablo grumbled.

Moluka explained, "Because we were accompanied by a Silver."

"And?" he prodded.

Rem explained, "A quest like this is normally rated for a party of Irons, so a few Coppers with a Silver would be considered enough."

"Not when that Silver is complete fool and coward. On top of the fact this is Veldora's cave. Whatever, let's head back to town."

"We can't!" Prelsina argued.

"Why?"

Moluka answered, "The quest we accepted with that dirtbag was to find and rescue some village girls that were captured by the Goblins."

"Imps," he corrected.

Pointing to one of their corpses, Moluka exclaimed, "These disgusting things! Whatever they're called!"

"I highly doubt they are still alive," he argued coldly. "And even if they are, I strongly doubt they would want to stay that way."

Prelsina's whole face went pale at that answer. "… Th – That…"

Sighing at her expression, Diablo pulled one of the smaller crystals from his Inventory and threw it down, one of the mechanical angels appearing in a flash of light. "Archangel Flame, search for more Imps. If you find any living females, human or demihuman, return them to me."

The machine responded with a quiet humming noise before flying off into the cave.

"Now, let's leave the cave. There is little we can do now beyond wait for its return."

"… Okay…" Prelsina answered with a defeated nod.

* * *

Outside the cave, Aqua yawned as they entered the sunlight.

"Which province did you come from?" Diablo questioned.

"Melromarc," Moluka added.

Diablo glanced at Rem.

"It's to the west of Faltra."

"Ah."

"How'd you end up with someone from Faltra then?" Shera questioned.

Moluka answered, "A friend of Fikuma's is in his Party, and she suggested we join him. He suggested a simple quest to see what we could do, and chose this one."

Raising an eyebrow, Diablo pursued a line of questioning. "I'm assuming the quest said killing Goblins."

"Correct."

"That was the first mistake. Imps are nothing like Goblins. Goblins are rather peaceful unless provoked and prefer to live in forests. Imps are insane beasts that utilize women of other races to breed. Goblins are also significantly more intelligent than Imps, but are physically inferior in almost every way. Which is why they do their best to avoid encounters with other races. And why they are often enslaved by more powerful races."

"You almost sound like you like Goblins…" Shera muttered in amusement.

"Ah…" was all Diablo could force out as he realized it.

Nanana came in with a save, however. "Well, Draphs are often discriminated against as demons, so I'm sure there's some overlap there."

"Makes sense," Rem noted.

Diablo addressed the three once more. "We will return you to Faltra, you will likely find transport from there to Melromarc."

All three stared somberly at him.

Sighing, Nanana redirected, "So what were you trying to do as Adventurers?"

"Pardon?" Prelsina asked, surprised at the question.

"What were your goals when you became Adventurers?"

Fikuma was the first to answer, albeit slowly. "I… I was hoping to earn money for my village."

"H – Helping other Adventurers stay alive," Prelsina declared softly.

Moluka gripped her broken staff in frustration. "I… I just wanted to become the best wizard…"

Diablo sighed as he scratched his head in frustration. "For crying out loud. You're merciless, Nanana."

Nanana smiled sweetly at him. "I have no idea what you mean."

Diablo turned his attention to the three rookies. "Tell me, are any of you in a Familia?"

"No," Fikuma replied. "We'd never be able to travel far from Orario if we were."

"I see. Then join mine."

"Yours?" Prelsina asked in curiosity.

"Which god do you serve?" Moluka asked with mild suspicion.

Shera pointed to Diablo. "He's not exactly a god, but he is the ruler of our Familia."

The three girls looked at each other, then Diablo, silence filling the air for several long seconds. "… Eeehhh!?"

"What?" he questioned, worried by their reaction.

"Y – You're a god!?" Prelsina exclaimed.

Sighing, Diablo argued, "She just told you I'm not."

"Then what _are_ you…?" Moluka asked, bewildered.

"A Demon Lord," he answered plainly.

"As well as a god," Nanana added.

"A D – Demon Lord…" the bespectacled redhead mumbled in disbelief.

Shrugging, Megumin interjected, "He's not like the ones from the old stories."

"Stories is all that those are," Diablo argued. "Humans tend to only remember the bad, after all."

Moluka stared at him suspiciously. "… You promise you're not evil?"

"If I was I would've left you to the Imps to make my own escape easier. Or worse."

She frowned in thought as she studied his face.

"Now, my Familia and I are returning to Faltra. You're welcome to come with us or find your own way there."

Mordred piped up, "And I'd recommend going with, because you never know what will pop up. These forests have been overrun with weird stuff ever since Veldora vanished. Hell, you might even run into a Rath. Now _that_ would be fun."

All three just stared at her in silent worry as they huddled closer together.

"Yeah… hunting down a Rath… that would be very nice…"

Diablo sighed as he tried to prevent Mordred from frightening them further. "Let's just head back."

* * *

Some time later, as the group made their way back to Faltra, Diablo noticed someone exiting the city, running towards the group. "Hm?"

"Priestess, Wizard!"

It was Kyouya, shouting Prelsina and Moluka's classes, as he had clearly forgotten their names.

Moluka twitched an eyebrow as he approached them.

As he did, his eyes caught onto Diablo, and his run slowed to a jog in disbelief. "You!?" Looking at the girls as he approached, he asked, "What are you –?!" only for Fikuma to charge forward and ram her fist square into his jaw, sending him flying like a skipped pebble.

"YOU FUCKING FILOLIAL SHIT COWARDLY FUCK TARD!" she cursed violently.

Diablo trembled as he held back his laughter.

The bewildered man stood up weakly with blood dripping from his chin. "E – Eh…?"

"You left us to die, you bastard!" Moluka accused.

Wincing, he tried desperately to argue his case. "Wh – What? No, I –"

"Ice Needles!" Moluka shouted, interrupting him and sending a small volley of large spears of ice at him.

Kyouya shrieked in fear with a shrill voice and dove out of the way of the attack.

Megumin just stared at him, deadpan. "Some hero…"

Nanana snickered and commented slightly louder than needed, "If I remember right, Aqua said something about a garbage goddess reincarnating him."

Aqua felt a sudden pain in her back.

Diablo tried to ignore their squabble and focused a disinterested, pitiful stare on the man.

"Wh – What…?" he asked tremulously before standing up.

"First you endanger my followers from some twisted sense of injustice, then you lead a bunch of Coppers to an Imp-infested cave and abandon them as soon as the situation gets uncomfortable."

His mouth flapped open and closed several times, but no words formed.

"I should kill you where you stand. It would be just so easy. But ultimately not very satisfying. Instead… tell me Kyouya, what is an Adventurer and Hero's greatest resource?"

"H – Huh?" he mumbled, not grasping his point.

"Well?" Diablo prodded, his expression flat and cold.

"M – Money?"

"Reputation."

Kyouya flattened his brow in frustrated annoyance. "… What do you…?"

"Tell me, what do you think will happen when I and these girls report on what happened in their quest and your abandonment of them the moment Imps showed up?"

He lurched back with a cold gasp as he put the pieces together.

"You may have protected your life by fleeing, but I can promise you it won't be a life worth having. Come on girls. We have a quest to turn in."

The others followed him, even the meek Prelsina unable to look Kyouya in the face as he stood there silently.

* * *

As they entered the city, Diablo heard rabbled voices hollering and shouting nearby. Cocking an eyebrow in thought, he followed the source of the voices and was greeted with a crowd of people that could have been Faltra's entire population. "What's going on?"

Moluka scanned the crowd before her eyes shot wide in disbelief. "Th – That carriage…"

Tracking her gaze, Diablo looked where she was staring and saw the crowd gathered around a large, ornate carriage adorned with golds and violets, pulled by several large, ostrich-like birds that were significantly taller than any human.

"That's the queen's royal carriage…"

"The queen?"

"The queen of Melromarc. Mirellia Q Melromarc."

Following the carriage's path from a side street, Diablo's group kept an eye on it as it neared a building towards the back of the town, just past Mage's Guild.

"That's the lord's estate," Rem explained, pointing to the small building just behind the guild hall. "His actual home is outside the city walls, from what I understand, but he conducts most of his business there."

"That must be who she's here to see then," Mordred commented, doing her best to stay in the shadows.

Diablo watched carefully as the door to the carriage swung open and two figures stepped out.

The first was a petite girl with long, dark blue hair tied in twintails, her face lit up by her bright azure eyes, wearing an extravagant, full-length dress made of blue fabric with cerulean, gold, and white accents.

'_Well she's adorable…_'

'_She's probably a princess, you know,_' Nanana chided. "Who's that?"

"That's Melty Q Melromarc, second daughter and crown princess of the region," Moluka explained.

Diablo raised an eyebrow in confusion. '_She's the second daughter, yet she's the crown princess? How unusual._' His attention was fully engrossed when the second occupant stepped out.

A tall, stern-faced woman with deep, dark purple hair tied up neatly, her gold crown perched atop her head, piercing violet eyes and a more than enviable figure accentuated by her full-length dress of deep reds and muted golds.

'_Beautiful…_'

Nanana chuckled lightly to herself. '_You certainly never stray far from your type._'

Diablo raised an eyebrow at her. '_What's that supposed to mean?_'

She just shrugged with an amused smirk. '_Nothing, nothing. Come on, let's turn in that quest and report that dirtbag._'

'_Agreed._' Stealing one last glance at the queen, the group made their way to the Guild Hall.

* * *

Sylvie heaved a heavy sigh as she sat in her chair. "I see… that's a shame, but not overly surprising."

"You knew he was like this?" Rem asked, surprised.

Sylvie shook her head. "I didn't strictly know, but I had my suspicions. Regardless. You completed the quest the Guild headquarters offered and completed the quest Tsurugi's group had embarked on. So the total reward of both quests goes to you. Twenty-five thousand Vals."

Diablo put a hand up to interrupt her. "The reward for the Guild's quest goes to us. The reward for the Imp quest goes to these three."

Sylvie nodded with an approving smile. "So be it. Twenty thousand to you, five thousand to the three Coppers."

"Good. One more thing. I would like to claim ownership of that cave."

Everyone in the room stared at Diablo in stunned silence.

"S – Seriously…?" Sylvie balked, doing her best not to shout.

"Is that a problem?" he asked with a stern scowl.

Sylvie felt a chill run up her spine and shook her head. "O – Of course not…! I just… didn't expect it. I'll see to the paperwork."

"Good."

* * *

After collecting the money, the group made their way back to their home at Wiz's shop, where Diablo placed Falnas on all four of the women, taking special care not to add to Fikuma's experience.

After expending the necessary mana to finish the process, he sighed as he sat back in a chair.

Mordred tested her muscles as she examined her body. "I don't really feel that different."

"You just joined, of course you don't," Rem commented dryly.

"Ah."

"So what now?" Moluka asked, looking at Diablo.

He just shrugged. "Whatever you want."

"Pardon?"

"I don't know how other Familias are run, but I don't expect you to constantly flock around me."

"Most Familias have a set structure. Doesn't yours?"

He frowned slightly in trepidation. '_… I want to ask what she means exactly, but that might play my hand a bit too much…_'

"How is a normal Familia organized?" Nanana wondered.

Moluka explained, "At the top is the deity or god. Some refer to them as the Patron. Just below them is the Captain, the mortal Follower who handles the day to day operations of the Familia, issuing orders, organizing quests, training the members, and ensuring the Patron's will is being enforced."

Diablo scratched the back of his head in consideration. '_… I am gonna have to find a Captain one day it seems…_' "I am a god that likes to see talent flourish and nurture what those around me value and get them to take it beyond the norm. I have yet to find a suitable person that shares this value in seeing others become the best in their beloved fields."

"I see," Moluka muttered before looking back at Diablo. "In the meantime it would be good to set up a captain of some sort, as I doubt you can accompany us on every single quest, especially as the Familia continues to grow."

"Ooh, me, me!" Shera cheered, only for Rem to pull her hand down.

"Not a chance, elf fatty," she hissed, the two growling at one another.

Sighing, Diablo argued, "I will decide when I find one suitable for the role. Not before. Until then I will continue to oversee until I find one that fits."

"Right…" the red-haired mage grumbled in disappointment.

Fikuma snickered in amusement. "Your little plan fell apart."

Moluka lurched back with her face flushing red. "I – I didn't have anything of the sort!"

"Oh please, it was written all over your face."

Prelsina smiled in relief as the two got into a friendly argument, before feeling a hand on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Mordred standing next to her with a nostalgic look in her eyes.

"You got good friends, kid," the blonde warrior noted.

"H – Huh?" she muttered, not sure how to react.

"You watch their backs in a fight and I have now doubt the three o' you will go far."

"U – Um, thanks…"

Mordred flashed a toothy grin before turning her attention to Diablo. "Oh, hey, Diablo, got a sec?"

"Of course," he responded, sitting up to address her.

"When do you think you can that new sword ready?"

"In a couple days."

Mordred proceeded to pull out the remnants her old sword, the damaged hilt and small portion of the blade. "Do you think you could use pieces of this?"

Diablo took the pieces in his hand, but raised an eyebrow at her request. "I suppose. But why?"

Mordred's expression fell as she answered. "Because… this sword was the last gift I received from my father before he died…"

"… Ah. I'll use what I can."

"Thank you…" she answered with a small smile and a bow. "He gave each of his daughters that wanted to become a warrior a sword when they were of age after all…"

"I understand." His expression softened as his mind drifted. '_Father huh… I wonder how Ako and Kaede are doing… Same with Kazu and Sugu…_' Sighing, he shook his head of the thoughts. '_Nothing I can do about it right now,_' he thought as he looked at the pieces of Mordred's sword and thought how to use them. '_Best start smelting some ebony and magiore._'

* * *

In the front of the shop, Lilietta perused the various shelves and display cases at the extravagant and ornate items Wiz had on display. "All of these items are so pretty… I wonder why nobody buys them."

"Right?" Wiz interjected with rare enthusiasm as she picked up an ornate necklace with a large jewel in the middle. "This necklace here grants you the strength of a thousand soldiers."

"Whoa!"

With a weak laugh, Wiz added, "Though it does have the minor side effect of making you infertile."

Lilietta's expression froze for several seconds. "… E – Eh…? Th – That isn't good at all!"

Wiz turned to the girl in surprise. "Eh? But then, what about these boots? They allow you to run as fast as the wind. Although, if you have a Dexterity below four hundred they become heavier than lead."

"Then the Dex boost is meaningless!"

"Th – Then what about this waterbreathing potion?"

Lilietta looked at the small white bottle of liquid suspiciously. "… The side effect?"

"Well until it wears off you can't breathe air."

Lilietta slumped her shoulders in a heavy sigh. "Miss Wiz, do you sell anything that doesn't have massive drawbacks or is obviously cursed…?"

Wiz put the bottle down and looked around desperately before picking up a large red potion bottle. "I – I have these potions."

Lilietta's suspicion was still in full effect. "That do what?"

"Completely heal your wounds."

"… And…?"

"And… that's it as far as I know."

"Really?" she asked with surprised excitement. "Where'd you get them?"

"Diablo made them," Wiz answered proudly.

Lilietta just stared at her with a shaky smile before sighing. "… Wow… Erm… Miss Wiz, I don't mean to be rude, but why do you sell all these awful items?"

"Awful…?" Wiz lamented. "But they're all so powerful. They let you breathe underwater, move at the speed of sound, or grant you wishes."

"But the side effects they come with are too much to bear!"

"People with high Stats aren't usually affected by those issues, though…" she grumbled.

Sighing, Lilietta explained, "This town, despite being the capital of the Faltra province, is inhabited mostly by Copper and Iron Adventurers, items like that are meant for Gold and Platinum Adventurers."

"O – Oh…" She managed to push aside her disappointment when she heard the bell ring as the door opened, turning to the potential customer. "Oh, welcome to Wiz's – EEEHHH?!"

* * *

In the back, Diablo had the pieces of Mordred's sword lying on a large cloth alongside several large pieces of ebony and magisteel ore.

"What do you plane to make it from?" Rem asked.

"Ebony mixed with magisteel."

"Won't that be rather dangerous?" Moluka challenged.

"Not if you get the mixtures right."

"I see. Well I'll be excited to see –"

She was cut off as Lilietta ran into the room from the front of the store, out of breath and frantic. "L – Lord Diablo, the front of the store, come quickly!"

Diablo nodded sternly and wasted no time getting to his feet and following her.

Making his way out to the front of the store, he almost tripped over his own feet when he saw who was waiting at the door.

Mirellia, Melty, and several soldiers.

With a gracious bow, Mirellia asked, "I take it you are the Patron of this Familia?"

"Yes I am," he answered as firmly as he could, his mind spinning. '_What is the queen doing here!?_'

"What is the queen doing here?" Nanana questioned.

"I'm here to speak with you directly, Sir Diablo," Mirellia explained calmly.

"Hoh? In private or right here?"

"A private setting is preferable."

"Follow me to my office then."

Mirellia nodded and followed after him, several soldiers moving with her. However, she turned to them and put a hand up. "No. Stay here with Melty."

"But, your highness…" one of the armored men argued weakly.

"That's an order."

"… Yes, your majesty."

* * *

Diablo and Mirellia stood in the large back room of the store used for smithing, Diablo standing against the wall as Mirellia sat. "So, what is it you wish to discuss, your highness?" His confidence on the front was just that, a front. '_Okay, keep your cool, just don't act stupid…_'

Mirellia was hit with a deep sigh before answering. "I have a request for your Familia."

"Oh? Directly from the queen." '_This is either going to be very good or very bad._'

"Yes. It concerns one of the lands under Melromarc's jurisdiction."

"I will hear your request."

"How do you feel about assassinations?"

'_I'm beginning to think very bad._' "They are no different from monster slaying, only requiring more stealth."

"Good. Then you can do my kingdom a great service in removing some filth from it. One that greatly profited from a horrible tragedy a few months ago."

'_I didn't hear about any tragedy after I arrived. I'll have to ask Rem or Megumin._' "I will need to know what I'm dealing with before I decide how to proceed."

"His name is Idol Rabier, and he was sold children that survived the first Wave."

Diablo's interest and concern spiked into pure rage at that moment. "… Children…?"

Mirellia nodded regretfully. "Yes. Demihuman children, to be precise. Unfortunately, due to the church and Melromarc's own political climate, Demihumans are discriminated against and slavery of them is legal."

"And you have not acted to change that?"

"If I make it illegal, the traders and their customers will merely go underground, and operate in the cover of shadow. If it is legal, then at the very least I have a chance of keeping an eye on it and knowing who is buying what. Thus I can plan to deal with them accordingly."

He nodded as he understood her position. "Regardless, why are you coming to a small, nameless Familia such as mine? I have no doubt the queen has many partners with the skill and expertise to accomplish the task."

"That in itself is the problem. If I were to send my Shadows to do this, then it would cause a disaster amongst the nobility and give the Church of Three Heroes enough momentum to try and take over the kingdom. And nobody needs another Slane Theocracy running around."

That logic made sense to him, as much as he hated to admit it.

"Besides that, such methods would leave too much of a trail, and if it was discovered I had someone assassinated because of their taste in slaves, well…"

Sighing, he finished her thought. "They'd go underground and keep their activities hidden."

"Correct. However, if it is some small, new Familia with an anonymous request, then that is where the trail ends. As a result, those who would like to keep matters as they are will not be aware if it is someone within their circle or a fellow noble who has marked them." She added with a playful smirk, "Not to mention you would gain new Familia Members in the form of freed and grateful Demihuman slaves."

Diablo just shrugged. "I would not impel them to join, that would need to be of their own choosing. Besides, would not just you being here leave a trail?"

"I make it a point to meet each and every new Familia within the country. That is all we are doing here. After all I have to inspect the character of every God and Goddess in my Kingdom. Lest they become another Aries. I honestly envy Lautreamont for getting Ereshkigal. Such a kind Goddess she is."

That was a new name for him. "Ereshkigal?"

Mirellia nodded in agreement. "Yes. She is the Patron of the Ereshkigal Familia and one of the three queens of the Lautreamont Knight Kingdom, alongside Arturia Pendragon and her sister Morgan."

"Ah."

"So, will you take the job?"

"Do you have any limitations?"

"Just make sure it can't be traced back to me."

Diablo stepped away from the wall and bowed extravagantly. "It will be done, Lady Melromarc."

She nodded with an appreciative smile. "I will ensure you are rewarded properly. Now, if you don't mind, I have a personal request of you."

He sighed, having a feeling the assassination was not her only reason for being there. "And that is?"

"If my information is correct, you are not of this world, am I right?"

He narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but decided lying to her would not help the situation. "… That is correct. Why do you ask?"

"Then you, to a degree, have no stake in the political dealings of this world."

He thought for a moment how to respond before deciding to just be blunt. "Only in so far as they effect the people who follow me. So tell me what it is you want."

"My husband, the king of Melromarc. I worry he is too easily swayed by the words of the church. I figure if a god approaches them, they may be less likely to scheme as brazenly."

"I see. So you're effectively asking me to frighten them into obedience?"

She nodded firmly. "At least until I can deal with them properly."

"I see." He scratched the back of his head in thought. "I cannot be certain of how that will go, given my innately Draph nature."

Mirellia merely shook her head. "Gods and goddesses take many forms. Some are merely human in appearance, others more Demi-like, some even take full animal appearances."

"I understand."

"That doesn't guarantee they will not act rudely, or that they'll even treat you kindly. But at the very least it may reign them in somewhat."

"We can only hope."

* * *

In the main room, Melty stood transfixed as Aqua effortlessly moved and directed a small body of water through the air. "Wow… such a neat trick…"

"Hehe," Aqua snickered proudly.

"I'll see to it as soon as possible," Diablo urged as he and Mirellia stepped out from the back of the building.

"That is good to hear," she answered confidently.

Melty pointed to Aqua as her mother approached. "Mother, this woman can control water!"

Mirellia looked at Aqua in mild astonishment.

Nanana just sighed with a shrug. "And that's pretty much all she can do. Party tricks."

"Hey! I can use it to fight!" Aqua argued loudly.

"All you do is splash water around."

Mirellia put a hand in front of her mouth in a restrained laugh.

Melty, however, stared at her mother with a sense of relief and awe before looking to Diablo.

Before she could say anything, Mirellia spoke up with an order. "Now, Melty, why don't we take our leave?"

"O – Oh, yes, Mother."

And so, the two royals and the soldiers departed the store.

After they were gone for a few seconds, Nanana glanced at Diablo. '_So what did the MILF want?_'

'_She wants me to kill someone,_' he answered bluntly.

'_Why?_'

'_I'll explain in a minute._' He then turned his attention to the petite Pantherian. "Rem."

"Yes?" she asked, her tail swishing happily behind her.

"Was there some sort of tragedy before I arrived?"

Frowning slightly, she nodded in affirmation. "Just before Shera and I summoned you, the first Wave of Calamity hit."

"Wave of what?" Nanana asked.

Rem looked at her, not sure how to react. "H – Huh?"

"You said Wave of Calamity. What kind of wave?"

Wiz was the one to explain. "It's not a wave as in a wave of sound or water, but a wave of space. The entire area is coated in a dark aura, and monsters begin pouring out a portals appearing in the sky in their thousands. The one that hit recently appeared over a region of Melromarc known as Seyaette. One of the few regions that was friendly to Demihumans, and the lord of the region died in the attack."

Diablo's eyes narrowed deeply in suspicion. '_The lord of a region friendly to Demihumans dies in a meteorological event such as that? Just in time for all of his people to be sold off as slaves. I smell a conspiracy._'

"And these Monsters are like the ones that come from Orario's Dungeon, not the ones you find out in the rest of the world."

Diablo frowned slightly in thought. '_… Is that bad…?_'

"Is that bad?" Nanana questioned.

Wiz nodded in return. "Monsters from the Dungeon are significantly stronger from the ones you encounter around the world. The best way to think about it is any Monster you fight out here, the variant in the Dungeon is three times as powerful."

Diablo frowned in thought before Moluka interjected, "That's why the Four Cardinal Heroes exist."

"The who of the whatnow?" Nanana and Diablo asked in unison before the horned man even had a chance to think.

Rem explained, "The Four Cardinal Heroes. Legendary Adventurers summoned from another world."

Diablo and Nanana both looked straight at Aqua, who just looked at them in confusion. "Wh – What? Don't look at me, I'm down here."

"The Four Heroes wield the Four Cardinal Weapons. The Sword, Spear, the Bow, and the Shield."

Shera suddenly raised a hand, interrupting Rem.

"What?"

"A shield isn't a weapon, it's armor."

Twitching an eyebrow, Rem rebuffed, "Well… I know that, but it's still counted as one of the Four Cardinal Weapons."

"Except it's not a weapon. It's armor."

"That doesn't change the fact it's a Cardinal Weapon."

"Armor. Shields protect after all, not attack."

"Whatever…" she hissed. "Regardless, they're summoned as the Sword Hero, Spear Hero, Bow Hero, and Shield Hero."

"Interesting," Diablo commented in thought.

"Together with the allies they gain they're supposed to fight off the Waves."

"I see. And Orario does nothing to help?"

Moluka argued, "By the time they received news of the Wave happening it was already over."

Diablo shook his head. "That's not all that I meant. Providing Adventurers to help battle preparations or loaning out their members."

"Good luck with that," Fikuma retorted weakly.

"Hm?"

Megumin answered, "Most gods are only here for their own amusement. Even if they receive fatal injuries they just go back to their original Realm. So they're not overly concerned with what happens to this world."

Diablo narrowed his eyes in annoyance. "Is that so…?" '_Perhaps I need to make them care._' "They sound utterly pathetic."

"And you would've done things differently?" Fikuma argued.

"It doesn't matter whether I'm here to enjoy myself or to conquer your world, but it's all meaningless if there's no world left."

"Yeah," Nanana agreed with a firm nod.

"Right…" the others responded unsurely.

* * *

"Now then…" Diablo muttered as he looked over a map of the region. "I suppose before anything else, we should get those three some new equipment and finish Mordred's sword."

As he was thinking, Megumin approached him. "Hey, Diablo, think we can go practice my Explosion magic somewhere?"

Sighing, he stood up and turned to her. "That's fine, but we can't use Satan's castle anymore. Or any other location that might in fact be inhabited."

"R – Right…" Megumin stammered, not looking him in the eyes.

"… Megumin…" he asked, noticing her behavior.

"Y – Yes…?" she responded, her eye still darting all over the room.

Before the sudden interrogation could continue, the front door of the shop slammed open, Satan walking in practically coated in flames. "Lord Momon – ahem, Lord Diablo!" she exclaimed, having to correct herself on his name. "I thought we had a deal!"

Diablo turned his ire on Megumin harshly. "What? Did? You? Do?"

"… N - Nothing…" she stammered weakly.

Stomping a foot, Satan howled, "Nothing my ass! You've been blowing up my castle for the past week! Thank the Supreme Beings I moved my kitties to Nazarick!"

"Megumin!" Diablo snarled.

Megumin bowed deeply in apology. "I'm sorry! IneededtoletoffsomeExplosionssoIpriedAquawithliquorandmadehercarryme!" her words all running into one long breath.

Diablo tightened his fist and looked at the antsy water goddess trying to sneak away. "Aqua!"

Before she could take a chance to flee, Moluka raised a hand and her broken staff towards her. "As thy source of power, hold my enemy and stop their motions. Bind!" Suddenly, a hexagonal grid of glowing lines appeared at her feet and extended to where Aqua stood, the blue-haired girl's movements freezing entirely.

Diablo widened his eyes momentarily before deciding to keep his focus. '_… I'll need to look into that._' "Now, Aqua, tell me. You knew my deal with Satan."

"But it was really good booze…!" she whimpered.

"I DO NOT CARE!" he roared. "You do not realize the kind of trouble you have caused us!"

Aqua, having been freed Moluka's spell, winced back with a mixture of fear and worry.

"Not only did you do something I promised an ally we wouldn't do, you defied a direct order!"

She sunk her shoulders as he continued.

"You're lucky Satan came directly to me instead of rampaging through the city! Anyone she would have killed would be on _your _shoulders!"

The girl practically collapsed to her knees from his verbal lashing.

"For crying out loud…" Diablo groaned before folding his arms in disgust. "I"ve ignored most of your actions until now because I had hoped you would change. Obviously, I was wrong. No wonder the other gods set you up in Purgatory."

"… D – Diablo…?" she begged weakly, only for him to ignore her.

"I can see now I'll have to deal with your problems personally."

She stared up at him fearfully.

"This will only be temporary, until I'm certain you can be trusted."

"Wh - What is…?" she asked, dreading his answer.

Thinking for a moment, Diablo nodded to himself. "Hm… yes, this will kill two birds with one stone."

Aqua could only gulp nervously.

"Wiz."

"Y – Yes," the busty brunette stammered.

"Do you know of any slave traders in the area?"

She stared at him blankly, floored by the unexpected question. "H – Huh? U – Um maybe but why?"

"To get the slave collars off of Shera and Rem and one on Aqua."

"E – Eh?!" almost everyone in the room gasped in disbelief.

Nanana sighed in surprise. '_Wow, she really pissed you off._'

He only nodded. '_I am a man of my word and she broke it._'

Nanana just shrugged in response. '_Ah. Well personally I think you should've done this sooner._'

'_I tried to give her a chance to change naturally._'

'_Well, whatever. I'm going with you, I've always been curious what a slave auction looks like._'

'_Right…_'

* * *

"D – Don't you think this is going a bit too far…?" Wiz asked with concern.

Satan just stood with her arms folded. "Personally I think you need to punish that little brat too, she instigated this."

Diablo shook his head in response. "Megumin's just a child. Though I will punish her for this, I assure you. But Aqua should know well enough not to do something like this. Clearly that concept needs to be forced into her. Otherwise she'll never learn."

As they continued walking, Wiz pointed to a large tent just outside the city. "There, that's the slave trader. Though officially her occupation is raffling off monster eggs."

* * *

Later, Diablo, Shera, Rem, Nanana, and Aqua, who had her hands bound with rope that Nanana held, made their way to the tent.

"Is the rope really necessary!?" she shouted.

Nanana rebuffed, "It's to make sure you won't run away."

"You can't seriously be planning to put a slave collar on a goddess!"

"Maybe you should have thought of that before defying my orders. Orders I give have a reason, after all."

The goddess could only whimper weakly.

As they approached, Diablo noticed someone standing just outside the tent. He gulped nervously as he got a better look at the person.

A tall, extremely curvaceous redhead with her hair tied up, one bunch covering her right eye, her violet left eye looking around with a seductive shine, the open-back dress she wore leaving very little of her bombastic chest to the imagination, the cuts along the sides showing off almost all the curves of her hips. She took a drag from a small pipe as she noticed Diablo and the others approaching, her ruby red lips curling with anticipation. "Hm? Ah, what do we have here? Prospective customers?"

"In a way," Diablo answered, the beast inside having to be very forcibly contained.

Smirking, she tapped the excess into a tray from her pipe and motioned inside the tent. "Step right inside."

Diablo gulped slightly as he and the others followed her in. '_I wonder what a slave auction is like…_' His mind filled with innumerable possibilities, from buxom elves hung up on chains, to petite Dwarves paraded in front of a horde of frothing bidders, to some that he could not even bare to focus on. All of his thoughts were silenced when he entered the tent and saw a large variety of plain looking cages with wooden lids and floors strewn around the area in relative silence, a smaller tent situated in the center.

Nanana merely shot him a playful, mischievous glare as his expression flatlined. '_What's wrong? You almost seem disappointed._'

'_Sh – Shut up…_'

"So, what's your pleasure? Buying or selling?" the redhead asked as she sat on a stool in front of the smaller tent. Looking over Rem, Shera, and Aqua, the woman commented on them. "I imagine that elf would fetch a rather high price. And the Pantherian…" she trailed off as she looked at Rem. "I'm sorry, but we don't buy pregnant slaves."

"Neither are for sale and neither are –"

He was cut off by a shocked and sputtering Rem. "P – P – Pregnant!?"

"When did that happen?" Shera wondered.

Frowning in thought, the woman added, "What I'd like to know is where you came upon a Demon Lord's child."

Shera hummed in thought before something hit her like a bus. "Huh…? Ah! Diablo, that night you tortured her!"

Diablo's face turned so red it threatened to melt off. "I didn't do _anything_ like that! I merely stroked her tail and ears!"

Nanana looked at him deadpanned. "… _That's_ torture…?"

"H – How do you even know that!?" Diablo shouted, changing the subject to the redhead.

She raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. "You don't know? I'll introduce myself. I'm Medios, the most deductive slave trader, since I can judge every potential purchase, and customer, by their mana."

"I knew others could see it!" Shera cheered.

Medios raised an eyebrow in amused surprise. "Didn't you know? All elves can see mana." Pulling back the right side of her hair, exposing her other eye and a slightly pointed right ear, Medios explained, "I myself am one quarter elf, which is why I can see it."

"I see…" Diablo muttered in thought. '_That's dangerous…_'

Changing the subject, she urged, "So, if you're not here to sell, you must be here to buy."

"Not exactly. I'm here to get a slave collar applied to someone."

That interested her greatly. "Oh? Who? The pretty Otherworlder over there or the goddess?" Smirking with excitement, she noted, "I've never gotten the chance to put a slave collar on a goddess before."

"Then today's your lucky day. That blue-haired troublemaker is the one I'm here for."

Medios' smirk widened in response. "My, my, how exciting. Just for that privilege, I'll waive the fee."

"… Eh?" Aqua mumbled in disbelief.

She then poured a small amount of semi-transparent ink into a small dish. "The collar is magically produced by forming a seal on the slave's body in special ink mixed with the master's blood."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow in response. "… Ah crap…"

Medios turned to him in amusement. "Afraid of knives?"

Shera shook her head with a shrug. "Nah, Diablo has really powerful blood."

The alluring woman blinked in thought. "What do you mean?"

Taking the knife she handed him, Diablo pricked the end of his finger, with blood shooting out like a hole in a balloon.

"Oh my…"

"I frightened the Chienthropes at the Guild…"

"I can see why…" Catching a small amount in the dish she began mixing it, but noticed the blood still squirting out. "Erm…"

Sighing, he put reassuring hand up. "It's going to keep going for a while. It'll stop when it clots eventually."

"R – Right…" Grabbing a nearby brush and dipping it in the dish, she walked up to Aqua. "Hold her top open for me."

"R – Right," Nanana answered, finally grasping how serious the situation is as she opened Aqua's shirt, seeing something that surprised her about the goddess' modestly voluminous chest. "… Y – You're not wearing a bra…!?"

Aqua huffed dismissively. "Yes I am."

"No, you're not," she argued bluntly.

"Yes, I am."

"No. You're not!" she urged, pointing to Aqua's bare chest under her top.

Aqua smirked proudly. "Yes. I am. It's just invisible so no one can see it. Just like my panties."

Nanana stared at her for a few more seconds before her brain seemed to completely glitch to a stop. "… Do you even know what a bra and panties are for!? … You know what, forget it. Just mark this idiot."

"Understood," Medios retorted in mild amusement. "Now be sure to hold her still, I don't want to end up making this an explosive seal."

Aqua's entire body tensed up like a corpse as Medios drew the seal on her, intricate patterns and shapes that, once she put the finishing touches on, condensed into a singular pattern right in front of Aqua's collarbone. "There, done."

"O – Oh, that wasn't too –" Aqua began to say before the seal suddenly lit up brightly as purple arcs of energy shot and zapped around her body, her back arcing as the pain of magical electricity coursed through every inch of her body.

* * *

**And fin! Ninth chapter down. If you liked it be sure to let me know with a review, I would greatly appreciate it. If you were confused, unsure, or simply have questions on anything, do leave me a review letting me know what they are and I will do what I can to address your concerns. If you did not like it, review if you must, but another activity you actually enjoy may be what the doctor ordered. With all that out of the way, until next time, bye-bye!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter X**

**Greetings all my wonderful readers! I am back, yet again, with more Demon Lord's Adventurers. I would warn you to expect more going forward, it is what my brain is currently glued to. Though I am bringing out other stories as we go, so do not worry. That said, it seems most of you enjoyed the previous chapter, which makes me glad. Do be sure to let me know if you like this one as well. I want to give my thanks to Bakuto Masaki for following wherever my whims take me. Moving on, on to the reviewer responses!**

**Messiah of authors: Indeed. I'll leave it to you to decide which for now.**

**Lawoi: Is it bad? Probably, but don't let that stop you. Certainly doesn't stop me.**

**I always use the Fate Artemis, sorry.**

**DreamWeaverGod: Thankfully there was a demon god there to prevent things from getting too bad.**

**coduss: Technically.**

**METALHELLSPWN: What makes you think Naofumi will be present at all? But yes, Aultcray will get what he deserves.**

**Omnisaurus: True, true. This is in general terms though.**

**correnhimself316: Indeed. I can't say if it will have any effect on her, this is Aqua we're talking about after all, but there's hope. Can't make any promises about that, but to be fair, this version of Diablo is effectively Diablo with the powers of Ainz, so there's that. It's different in Demi-years, trust me.**

**ObsidianUnknown66: Darkness is always Darkness my friend. Yeah, should make things interesting I hope. Ereshkigal is best goddess. Oh it's certainly interesting, that's for sure.**

**15songoku: I am hyped beyond belief for season two!**

**Shera is a fluffy muffin indeed. And yeah, that smile of Rem's is too much.**

**I did the same with Demon Queen from MaoYu, that's who Sinoula is.**

**Well they'll come up again, I promise.**

**Prelsina is definitely my favorite of the three names, though I obviously liked the other two or I wouldn't have used them. She's in the story, I promise you that.**

**Lilietta is from Otona no Bouguya-San.**

**You'll find out soon.**

**The gods don't care, generally. The only reason most of them would care if all mortals died out is the boredom that would bring. As for the Wave timers, they're called Dragon Hourglasses. **

**So far so good, though some of those only have characters involved, no plot.**

**tempace: Arce? Do you mean Maple? Oh I've seen Bofuri, I promise you. Maple is the ultimate lifeform. And I greatly appreciate your effort, and your English is quite good, actually.**

**Skull Flame: Of course, this _is_ Ereshkigal we're talking about.**

**Aqua is certainly the dumbs.**

**Medios is from How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord.**

**Yes. The design I'm using for her is the unofficial Prince Mordred Lancer design, since it's busty and I like my busty women, if you can't tell already.**

**Indeed it does.**

**Phew! That was a lot!**

* * *

"O – Oh, that wasn't too –" Aqua began to say before the slave seal on top of her collarbone suddenly lit up brightly as purple arcs of energy shot and zapped around her body, her back arcing as the pain of magical electricity coursed through every inch of her body.

Diablo and the others stood in almost stone-faced horror as Aqua's body convulsed and jolted as the light from her seal grew brighter and brighter before it formed a ring around her neck and then suddenly condensed and burst with an audible pop, the seal vanishing and a heavy metal collar with a single chain link appeared on her neck.

Aqua twitched momentarily before slumping forward, seemingly unconscious.

Diablo gulped before sighing in exasperation. "… That's certainly not what I expected."

"Y – Yeah…" Nanana muttered in shock.

Medios put a hand on her chin in thought. "Hm… so gods react in much the same way to a slave seal as mortal beings. Fascinating. Now, is this all you wanted?"

Diablo, shaking his mind of the bizarre sight he had just witnessed, refocused his mind. "N – No. I would like to learn how it can be removed."

Medios blinked silently a few times as she looked at him. "Really? Just after it was put on her?"

"Not her, them," he explained, pointing to Shera and Rem.

"Ah," she replied with an understanding nod. "Do you know who put the seals on them?"

"No one. Their collars are the result of a botched summoning spell."

Medios tilted her head in confusion, the situation not making a lick of sense to her.

Nanana explained, "They tried to summon a Demon Lord and succeeded. But he flipped the script with his magic and the collars appeared on them instead."

Medios sighed as she processed the information. "My, my… that _is_ a predicament."

"Well…?" Diablo prodded.

"A summoning collar is nearly impossible to remove without the consent of the caster. And since the casters are the ones who got the seal instead of their Summon, that brings up a whole host of complications. So we need to experiment."

"… What _kind_ of experiment…?"

Medios just smiled wryly. "Just wait. Shera, come with me."

The elf blinked curiously as she pointed to herself, Medios nodding in affirmation. "O – Okay," she muttered before following her.

Putting an arm over the elf's shoulder, Medios addressed Diablo. "This'll take a little while, so feel free to peruse what I have for sale."

Diablo nodded as Medios dragged the naïve elf to the back of the tent before looking around the area.

Nanana just sighed with a shrug. "Figures she'd try and sell us some slaves while we're here."

"She has to make money somehow. Not that I'm pleased with getting involved with the slave trade," Diablo responded as he looked around the various crates and cages.

"Well, at the very least we can some maids to clean up the home or something."

"Right…" he rebutted before his attention was drawn by a small, weak cough.

Nanana frowned curiously as Diablo began walking swiftly.

Turning, Diablo found a small cage tucked away in a corner. '_That sounds like a…_' Pulling aside the cloth on top of the cage, his blood froze as he saw a petite, frail girl with messy, matted brown hair, two small, round ears on top of her head, and a furry tail filled with dirt, her small red eyes clouded with agony, clothed in little more than worn rags. His fists clenched tightly as he saw the weak girl coughing repeatedly. '_… Must… remain… calm…_'

Nanana looked up at him in worry, recognizing the expression in his eyes and his trembling hand. "… Diablo…?"

The little girl could seemingly do nothing but cough before her coughing fit knocked her onto her back.

Unable to hold his rage back any longer, Diablo forcefully and effortlessly ripped the door off of the cage.

"D – Diablo!" Nanana exclaimed.

Medios, running out to see the commotion, sighed as she approached the situation. "I understand you may want one for yourself, but you still need to pay for it first."

Diablo responded by grabbing a random fistful of gold and silver coins before simply throwing them at Medios' feet. "Keep them." He then made his way to the girl, who was only further frightened by his actions and his expression, scurrying away to the back corner of the cage in terror.

She curled into a small ball, as small as she could, as she saw his hand reaching out for her, wincing as he touched her, before looking up as he simply stroked her hair gently before gingerly picking her up and holding her in his arms.

"It's okay…" he said in the softest voice he could manage. "I'm not going to hurt you…" '_Whoever did this however… I'm going to make them regret being born…_' "It's okay little one…"

The girl trembled in his arms with a mixture of fear and confusion, as the seconds past and she realized he wasn't going to hurt her, she began loosening up before tears began falling from her eyes.

Nanana watched the scene in awe. '_Wow… maybe he really does have kids…_'

The girl only continued to cry harder and harder as Diablo held her.

Diablo held her gently and stroked her hair before turning to Medios. "Who was her previous owner?"

Medios shrugged in response. "I'm sorry, I can't reveal that infor –" she began before Diablo sent her a glare that practically glowed with fury.

"Tell me dammit!"

Medios very quickly realized that refusing or lying would not wind up well for her. "I – Idol. Idol Rabier."

Diablo released a snarl that caused many of the more feral and animalistic slaves in the tent to curl back and whimper in terror.

"I – If you're ready… Shera is ready for the experiment."

Diablo nodded and began to set the girl down, only for her grip around his shoulders to tighten. "Tell me this one's name first."

"Raphtalia. I believe."

Patting her on the back gently, he tried to get her attention. "Raphtalia."

She merely remained attached to him, still trembling.

"Raphtalia," he repeated.

The frightened girl pulled herself away from his slightly to look at him.

"I have something to do, so I need to put you down." Motioning to Nanana, who waved with a smile, he added, "She's a friend, she'll be nice to you."

She curled back slightly with her ears curling up.

Medios smiled in response. "My, my, she's certainly taken a liking to you. So, shall we transfer the seal?"

Diablo sent her a silent glare.

Wincing and laughing weakly, Medios answered, "I – I take it that means you want it removed entirely…?"

"Yes."

"R – Right."

"I have to put you down, alright?"

She stared at him quietly for a moment before nodding slowly. As he set her down, Rem walked up to her with a smile, Raphtalia hid away behind Diablo's cape.

Rem just smiled and reached her tail around and touched the tip of the frightened girl's furry tail.

"H – Huh?" Leaning out, she saw Rem smiling before she saw their tails touching, a weak smile forming on her own lips.

Diablo smiled in mild relief before following Medios back to the main tent, where he saw Shera in a thin, black, two-piece outfit that was little more than lingerie with a series of beads over her sensitive areas. He almost found himself lifted off the ground as his nose bled.

'_WHAT THE HELL!?_'

"W – Well?" Shera prodded with embarrassment. "Does it look… weird… Diablo?"

"Y – Yes! Wait, I mean no, I mean…!" he stuttered and stammered, finding his rein on his emotions still weak after the previous incident. "You look amazing and sexy but why are you wearing it!?"

Medios could not help but chuckle as the man's stone-faced demeanor completely crumble. "It's best to actually touch the skin the first time you do this, but I don't think she'd be up for you seeing her completely naked just yet."

"S – Skin…?!" he blurted out.

Medios just nodded. "Yes. Alright Shera, lie down on the bed over there."

"O – Okay!" she answered, lying herself down on the large bed at the back of the room.

Diablo gulped at the sight of Shera, in a skimpy outfit that hid barely anything, lying on the bed in front of him. '_… This is a bad position… I can see almost everything…!_'

Medios continued. "Alright Shera, I'm going to teach Diablo how to sense your flow of magic. If he can do that, he might be able to undo the magic imbued into your collar."

"Right…" she replied uncertainly.

"Now, Diablo, you need to touch her exposed skin and try to feel the flow of magic in her body."

"O – Okay," he answered as he climbed on top of Shera and reached out with a single finger, pressing it against her collarbone, only for Shera to moan at the sudden contact. "O – Oy! Don't go making weird noises!"

"Quit flirting already and get to work."

Grumbling slightly, he gulped and then put a hand fully on Shera's shoulder. '_Okay… I need to try and focus on the mana… Wait, how exactly do I do that…?_'

After a few silent moments, Medios urged, "Well? Even if you can't see mana you should be aware of what it feels like, since you feel it all the time while casting spells."

'_Oh…_' he muttered as that seemed to click in his mind. He began trying to focus on outside himself, where his hand was touching, Shera's soft skin, the rhythmic pulsing of her heart, the warmth of her body, the – '_… Gah! All I can focus on is how soft her skin is and how nice she smells…!_' Diablo shook his head forcefully of the thoughts. '_Okay, focus, focus! It's like the mirror. Try to feel the mana from my own body coursing through me. Then, focus on the mana in my hand. Then, try to feel where her body and mine are coming into contact and try to feel our mana intersecti – _' He suddenly lurched back as a new sensation filled his mind.

Medios smirked pleasantly. "Oh? Finally feel it? Good, now try touching somewhere closer to her core of mana."

Diablo stared at her blankly.

Medios sighed and just pointed between her own cleavage. "Her heart."

Diablo's head slowly and jerkily turned back to Shera. '_… SHIT!_'

Shera gulped in response.

"H – Here I go, Shera…"

"O – Okay, but it's kinda scary…"

Diablo took a deep breath and then grabbed a handful of Shera's immense bosom.

"Hyaauu!" she moaned loudly.

'_So soft…_' He immediately shook his head. '_Wait…! Wrong focus, wrong focus…! Wrong! Focus!_' Trying to feel where his own mana intersects with Shera's, he focused his attention on that. His sensation of the mana began to change from simply feeling heat and motion, to feeling more acute points of cohesion and movement, his mind presenting it as numerous threads all weaving and connecting with each other. '_So this is… her mana network…? Amazing… it's so complex and intricate, I can't even begin to see where it begins and ends…_'

"D – Diablo…" she moaned out as his moved and shifted on her chest, "not so rough…"

Her voice was unable to reach him in his focused state. '_Amazing! When I move my hand, it changes how I see everything!_' Sliding his hand up and pinching her peak that was barely covered by cloth, his sensation of the energy changed. '_Like this, I can see almost all the connections on a single thread at once…_' Moving his hand back down and grabbing it with force, his fingers practically sank into her soft flesh. '_And this way… I can see more of the network as a whole at once…_' Sliding his hand down, he wrapped around her soft mound from the side. '_And I can see the intensity of each flow that way…!_'

Shera's back arched as her breath hitched from his motions.

Medios smirked in response. "Good, good. So you can see her mana flow? Try finding where her mana is most densely collected and touch there."

Diablo focused his attention and tried to see where the energy was leading him. "Hmm… That's… lower…" Gulping down his nervousness, he moved his hand slowly down her body, being careful to never lose contact with her skin.

"H – Huh…?" she muttered in surprise and confusion.

Moving his hand down past her voluptuous breasts, he felt the energy concentrating lower and lower in her body. "It's concentrated most… right… here…!" he exclaimed as his hand stopped right at her navel.

"W – Wait, Diablo!" she cried out from his touch, her body reacting in ways she was not accustomed to. "If you touch my belly button now, I'll… I'll…!"

"J – Just bear with it…!" he urged, hoping to finish the process swiftly. '_There's so much mana packed densely here…! I – Is it near her womb?_'

Medios smirked in surprise. "Found it? Good. Now, try introducing your own mana. Slowly, carefully. Pump your own mana into hers."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow as his concentration almost broke. '_I know she's a slave traded but does she have to make it sound so sexual?!_'

Shera gulped deeply as Diablo began releasing his own energy into her, her body wiggling under his touch as she felt the energy fill her. "That area… where Diablo's touching… it's getting so warm…!"

Medios' eyes widened in surprise at his actions. "My, you _are _a talented one. You only just learned how to feel another person's mana and you can already mix in your own. Now comes the hard part. Try and use your mana to see if you can alter and influence Shera's. You'll need to use a lot more to do it. So go ahead, pump her full of your mana."

'_You're doing this on purpose!_' he snarled, trying to ignore it.

Smirking, she teased, "Pump her until she bloats from it."

He winced as he glared back at her. '_Lady! Shut up!_' "H – Here I go, Shera…"

"Y – Yes, do it… Diablo!" Shera shouted with swelling ecstasy.

Diablo began pushing more and more of his mana into Shera's body, light emanating brightly from their skin touched. '_It's so weird… I can't see it, but I can… I can see my mana intertwining with her own._'

"D – Diablo…! Diablo! I can feel you flowing into me!"

* * *

Outside the main tent, Nanana and the others stood with looks of disbelief, Nanana holding her hands over the bewildered Raphtalia's ears. "Good grief… Do they have to be so loud?"

Rem just sighed before glancing to the side and noticing Wiz standing silently, her expression placid, but her nose very pointedly bleeding. "W – Wiz…?"

Nanana heard a grumble nearby and turned to see Aqua finally waking back up and looking around in bewilderment. "Hey you, you're awake."

"Yeah, and I hurt like hell!" Aqua screamed as she stood up and scowled at Nanana.

"So all is right in the world."

Aqua grit her teeth viciously. "… At least untie me!"

* * *

Diablo sat on a chair opposite Medios, panting slightly in mental and physical exhaustion. '_That was too damn much…!_'

"Amashing…" Shera blubbered incoherently as she lay on the nearby bed.

Medios held up two strings tied in a large, yarn ball like knot. "So you see, if you want to break the collar, your goal is to find where Shera's mana and the collar's intersect. If you can interfere and untangle it, you can disconnect the collar. But as you can see, it's not as simple as it sounds."

"Indeed…" he groaned as he scratched his head in frustration. "It's like being in a room with hundreds of balls of yarn and I've got dark glasses over my face… Finding which one is the core one that interlocks with the Collar is going to be a pain…"

Medios nodded in affirmation. "Indeed. Personally, I'd recommend you just give up now."

"No," he retorted bluntly.

"Oh?" she answered, intrigued at his stern answer.

Looking at the sleeping Shera, Diablo noted, "I made a promise I would remove those Collars, so I will."

Medios smiled in amusement at his declaration. "Very well. Well, do be sure to come by again whenever you're in need of another slave."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow but decided not to pursue an argument. "Before I leave, you will remove Raphtalia's collar."

"Yes, yes," she responded dismissively.

* * *

Raphtalia backed away from Medios, holding the same ink-stained brush. As she reached out to just below Raphtalia's collar, where her seal is, the girl covered the spot in fear. "Come on now," she grumbled as she pulled the little girl's hands out of the way and proceeded to draw a new series of shapes and patterns on top of the existing ones.

As the new shapes warped in and faded, the slave crest lit up a violent purple and began sparking and smoking, Raphtalia's small body doubling over from the pain.

"Oy!" Diablo shouted, getting ready to go after Medios.

The redhead rebuffed, "It's connected to her soul, of course it's going to be painful to remove it."

Sighing, Diablo just aimed his palm towards her. "Soothing Sunlight." A small glow of energy shot from his hand and enveloped the girl, the pained gasps and trembling stopping moments later.

"Hoh?" Medios noted with intrigue. "Aren't you a compassionate one?"

Diablo just exhaled a huff in disapproval.

Eventually the smoking and sparking subsided and the collar glowed a vibrant purple before vanishing into a flicker of lights, the slave crest vanishing with it. The girl stood up, clueless and disoriented before feeling a hand atop her head. She recoiled at the sensation before realizing it was Diablo gently stroking her hair.

"You're free now."

Her small eyes stared up at him in a mixture of doubt, confusion, worry, fear, and relief before she just grabbed onto his arm tightly as tears began falling uncontrolled from her eyes.

Diablo maintained a soft expression as best he could, despite his fist trembling. '_That bastard will suffer._'

Raphtalia merely held Diablo's arm, crying uncontrollably as he gently patted her head.

* * *

Mordred sighed as she sat back in the chair, looking at Diablo, who still held Raphtalia in his arms as he sat. "So you didn't make much headway, ah?"

"Not on their collars, no."

Aqua tugged on the metal collar around her own neck to see if she could remove it, only to receive a powerful shock.

"We managed to get her one though."

Frowning slightly, Mordred looked over Aqua with the collar on. "I can see that. I have to admit seeing a goddess with a slave collar is an odd sight…"

"It's only temporary until she learns."

"Right…"

Diablo sighed as he looked at his free hand in thought. '_I wonder… is it possible to train myself to see mana as well…? I'll have to look into this. Maybe capture and experiment on Shera's brother if I ever encounter that trash._'

"So what now?" Mordred urged.

"I need to make equipment for you and the others, then I need to rid this world of some of its filth, and get little Raphtalia here something to eat."

Raphtalia twitched before waking up and looking up at Diablo, having heard her name.

"So you hungry?" he asked, glancing down at her.

"N – No…" she denied as her stomach growled.

Diablo smiled softly before standing up. "Come. Let's go buy you some dinner."

"I – It's okay, I won't cause any trouble…" she argued fearfully.

Diablo gave her the warmest smile he could as he looked at her. "It's no trouble at all little one."

She stared up at him with a combination of uncertainty and surprise. "… Are you sure…?"

"Yes. Let's go. You need some new clothes, too. As well as something to protect yourself as well," he urged as he stood up, putting her on the floor and grabbing her hand.

"Protect myself…?" she asked in befuddlement.

He nodded firmly. "Yes. You need to be able to fight back if anyone tries to hurt you. After all, I can't be there all the time sadly."

Raphtalia's expression fell deeply at his answer.

"This way you can protect yourself in any friends you make."

Her eyes widened slightly before she looked up at him. "Friends…?"

"Yes," he responded softly.

"Friends…" she answered weakly before she began trembling.

"Now look what you did," Nanana jabbed.

"M – Me!?" Diablo retorted, his surprise causing his act to fall.

"Rifana-Chan…" she eked out softly.

"… Who?" he asked, figuring the name was important.

"Rifana-Chan… Rifana-Chan…" she repeated weakly as she cried, "I'm sorry…"

Diablo tensed before tightening his fists yet again. '_My list of how to torture this maggot just keeps growing. I'll reserve a room for him in Nazarick's prison._'

* * *

Nanana and the others looked at a variety of outfits in a small clothing shop.

"Hm… what would look good on her…?" Nanana wondered. "Ah! This will do!" she called out as she pulled a small, red and brown dress with cross-stitching along the front from one of the racks. "I think modifying it for a tail hole shouldn't be too hard. So let's get this."

Diablo looked down at the girl in thought. "What do you think?"

"I'll wear whatever you tell me to," she answered weakly.

"Why? It's your choice."

She looked up at him in mild confusion. "My… choice…?"

"Don't like it?" Nanana asked in disappointment.

Diablo was about to answer for her when he noticed Raphtalia's tail slowly swishing side to side looking at the dress, bring a small smile to his face. "I think she likes it."

Leaning over to see her tail, Nanana nodded in agreement. "I think so too. Hey shopkeeper, we'll take this one!" she called out to the woman at the counter.

* * *

Diablo smiled to himself as he saw Raphtalia walking with her back a little straighter and a small smile on her face. '_It's always good to see young ones smile…_'

'_You must've been a pretty bang-up dad,_' Nanana commented.

That comment, however, brought a deep frown to his face.

'_Wh – What? What'd I say…?_'

'_I was not a very good father at all…_'

'_Huh?_'

'_I spent all my time working, and very little with my daughters. My eldest became a Pandora and died fighting a Nova. The youngest taken by illness. So I delved into games and work to make a world my four living children could enjoy,_' he explained, his fists clenching in frustration.

'_Oh…_' she trailed off regretfully. '_… Sorry I brought it up…_'

'_It's fine, they're my mistakes._'

The conversation was derailed when the others heard a loud growl and saw little Raphtalia holding her abdomen with embarrassment.

"I believe it's time for lunch."

"Any ideas?" Nanana asked.

"Hm… what do you like to eat, Raphtalia?" Diablo asked.

The girl looked up at him in thought. "What do I… I… don't know… I don't remember what food tastes like…"

Diablo winced and did his best not to act out. "… Let's get you a little bit of everything at a nearby tavern."

Raphtalia's tail swung back and forth hastily. "R – Really!? Everything?!"

Diablo patted her head gently. "As much as you can eat."

Raphtalia smiled brightly before following the others.

* * *

As they approached one of the restaurants, Nanana stopped as she saw a sign and got Diablo's attention. "We have a problem."

He just hummed through his nose to her.

"No Demis," she explained, pointing at the sign. "Are there any other restaurants in the area?"

"Yeah, but they're small," Rem explained.

Diablo scoffed dismissively. "Then if they decide to throw us out because members of our Familia are nonhumans, then they're going to lose much of their business."

Nanana smiled and grabbed Raphtalia's hand. "Come on, let's go inside."

Raphtalia nodded unsurely.

As the group walked in, a man approached them irately. "Hey, you can't bring them in here."

"Do you disallow gods as well?" Diablo asked, irritated.

"H – Huh? Er, well, that's…"

Diablo approached the man with a stern scowl. "I plan to eat here with my Familia. If that bothers you so much, that's fine. But I will tell every other god I know you don't allow them in your restaurant."

The man stammered and sputtered where he stood before deciding to give up the fight. "That… whatever… just don't stink the place up! Damn animals."

"I'd also recommend you not insult them."

The man hissed under his breath as he walked off.

"… Am I causing trouble…?" Raphtalia asked tearfully.

Nanana knelt down to her and smiled. "Not at all." Moving over to a table, she patted her legs gently. "Now come sit on my lap."

Raphtalia looked at her in surprise. "R – Really? I don't have to sit on the floor?"

"Of course you don't have to."

Shera chimed in with a smile, "Diablo doesn't make you do anything you don't want to."

Raphtalia frowned in concern before Nanana picked her up and placed the girl on her lap. "Can you read?"

"A – A little…" she answered unsurely.

Nodding, Nanana picked up a menu and opened it so they both could see it. "Okay. If you see anything you don't understand, just let me know."

Raphtalia nodded with a brighter smile and a small answer as she looked over the large list of foods.

Diablo smiled softly as he watched the two, the visage of a beautiful brown-haired woman and a petite girl with shiny black hair filling his mind.

Nanana nodded in understanding. "Right, so we'll get that. Alright Momo, what do you –?" her breath caught her in her throat as she looked at Diablo and saw tears slowly falling from his eyes. "M – Momo?!"

"H – Huh? What?"

"Diablo's crying!?" Shera exclaimed in shock.

Diablo flinched before wiping his eyes to realize he was in fact. "N – Nothing, it's nothing."

Rem frowned slightly in worry at the horned man.

"Alright, let's get ready for our meals."

* * *

As a large quantity of food filled the table on numerous plates and trays, Raphtalia looked over the items with awe, drooling and her tail wagging wildly. "R – Really…?! I can eat any of it?!"

"Yes, you can try as much as you want of anything you see," Diablo urged. "Whatever you like the most you can have."

Reaching across the table, she grabbed a glob of mashed vegetables from Diablo's plate and stuck it in her mouth, her ears perking up and her eyes lighting up as she did. "It's so good!" She proceeded to grab a chunk of mashed potatoes, a carrot, a piece of diced steak, and more from everyone else's plates.

Diablo frowned slightly as he watched the girl grab and eat everything with her fingers. "… Raphtalia."

Still deep in the throes of stuffing her face with food, the girl momentarily glanced up at him with a hum of recognition.

"Did anyone ever teach you to use utensils?"

Raphtalia shook her head as she swallowed, before coughing and gasping.

Sighing slightly, he handed her a glass of water. "Don't eat so much at once."

She gulped down the water like it was the best drink she had ever had. "Pah…" she sighed as she finally took a breath.

Nanana picked up a fork and knife and placed them in the girl's hands. "Here, let me show you how to use a knife and fork."

Raphtalia nodded and paid close attention as Nanana guided her hands.

Diablo smiled softly. '_You'd make a good mother…_'

Nanana's face turned bright red. '_H – Huh?!_'

'_How you're treating little Raph. You're acting like a good mother should._'

Her face turned even brighter red in response.

Raphtalia looked up at her in thought as her hands stopped moving and trembling. "Nana?"

However, Nanana's frantic mind misheard it. "E – Eh!? M – Mama?!"

Raphtalia just blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

"N – Nothing…" she stammered as she tried to cool her head.

Fikuma, however, chuckled in amusement. "Wanna be a Mama eh, Nana?"

Nanana stared at her with a pout and a bright red face. "Sh – Shush, or I'm letting Raph eat all your food."

Fikuma grinned mischievously. "That would just give her a bellyache."

"Wh – Why you…!" she snarled.

Raphtalia stared up at the others in confusion.

* * *

Diablo stood in the back room, forging and preparing materials to make gear and weapons.

Nearby, Shera sat on a chair watching quietly in little more than a small tank top and shorts.

Rem twitched an eyebrow as she peered into the room. "What is she doing in there…?"

"It helps him focus," Nanana answered mildly annoyed.

"Eh? How?"

Nanana flattened her brow, staring at Diablo in irritation. "… Don't ask."

Rem frowned before watching as Diablo picked up a pair of large, black gauntlets with large spikes. "Alright. These should do for Fikuma. Next is Moedred's sword."

Shera blinked curiously. "Huh? I thought her name was Mordred."

"Oh, right. Moedred."

Shera furrowed her brow in confusion.

Diablo looked over the fragments of her original sword and thought on how he wanted it to look. "Hm… that will do…" Taking several of the Ebony ingots, he put them in the forge and began heating them up to shape.

* * *

Outside the room, Lilietta looked around the front area of Wiz's shop in thought. "Don't you think we should switch out some of this stuff for better items?"

Wiz nodded in agreement. "I will. As I sell some of my older items, I'll replace them with Diablo's stuff."

"In other words, not going to happen…" the blonde lamented.

"Eh?"

Aqua then began pulling many of Wiz's items from the shelves. "This stuff's been here, what, three years? Take the hint. It's not going to sell." Pulling a multicolored choker off one shelf, she pointed to it. "Like this thing."

Wiz pouted in disappointment. "But that collar will grant any wish the wearer has!"

"… Eh? R – Really!?" she exclaimed before snapping it on underneath her collar.

Wiz frowned in worry. "… I wasn't finished…"

"… Wh – What else…?"

"Most use it as a weight loss tool, because if you haven't granted yourself the wish in four days, it suffocates you."

Aqua's face paled further and further. "… SAY THAT FIRST! THAT'S WHAT YOU SHOULD DO!"

Lilietta frowned slightly. "Oh dear… what do we do now?"

Nanana walked into the room to see Aqua weeping and sighed. "Okay, what did stupid do?"

Megumin answered, "Activated one of Wiz's items without hearing the full explanation."

Nanana scratched her head in exasperation. "Of course she did. What does it do?"

"Kills you in four days if you don't fulfill your biggest wish."

"… No, seriously what is it."

Shaking her head, Wiz urged, "That's what it is and does. A lot of girls use it as a weight loss aid."

Nanana stared blankly for several moments. "… Wow. Aqua's stupidity is finally getting her killed."

"Get this thing off me!" Aqua begged.

Wiz shook her head. "That's impossible. It's not able to be removed by any magic or physical strength."

Nanana folded her arms in thought. "So she will really die in four days? I'll be sure to put up fliers for a new healer."

"You're ruthless!" Aqua shrieked.

"And you're an idiot."

Aqua grumbled silently before Diablo walked out of the forge, annoyed.

"All this noise is distracting."

"Well Aqua committed suicide," Nanana deadpanned.

Diablo looked at her quietly and then looked at the frantic Aqua. "She's still here."

Pointing to Aqua's neck, Nanana explained, "That choker on her neck will kill her in four days."

"… And we get it off, how?"

Wiz answered, "By her fulfilling whatever her greatest wish is."

Diablo folded his arms in thought. "Moluka, deities return to heaven when they take fatal damage, correct?"

Moluka nodded plainly. "As far as I'm aware."

Diablo just shrugged. "Then we needn't do anything. We just let her die."

Aqua gaped at him in horror. "… You can't be serious!"

"It will get you back to the realm of the gods. It's what you've wanted this whole time."

Aqua slumped her shoulders back despondently.

Diablo noticed her reaction with concern. "… It _will_ get you back right…?"

Throwing out her hands, Aqua exclaimed, "How would I know?! A goddess has never been dragged along with a Reincarnated! I could get sent back, I could just get brought back to life here again, or I could be dead forever!"

Nanana looked at her in shock. "Wait, seriously!"

"Oh don't sound so happy!" she snapped.

Nanana argued in annoyance, "Hey, I hate your guts, I don't want you to cease to exist, there's a big difference!"

Diablo sighed heavily. "This is very, very bad…"

"What do you suggest we do?" Megumin asked.

Putting a hand on his chin, Diablo looked at Wiz. "Wiz, what is the origin of that choker?"

"Pardon?" Wiz muttered in thought.

"Was it crafted by divine or mortal hands?"

Wiz put a hand on the back of her head in confusion. "I… believe it was made by a powerful alchemist just after the gods descended."

"So it isn't a Divine Artefact?"

"As far as I know."

"Good." Diablo walked up to Aqua and put a hand on the choker. "Greater Break Item."

The choker flashed for several long seconds before shattering into dust.

Aqua stared blankly for several long seconds. "… Eh?"

Diablo stared off in thought. "Hm… so it works."

Aqua trembled in confusion. "Wait… how did you… why did you… _what_!?"

"What?"

"You could have done that to our collars this whole time!?" Rem exclaimed.

Diablo shook his head in denial. "No. Summon Collars work differently, it could damage your minds if I do."

"E – Eh!?"

"I had a suspicion due to how the summon crystals are able to store and bring the contracted in and out, and Medios confirmed it for me. The Slave Collars are linked directly to your soul, your mana network. Simply shattering it could cause severe damage to your mana network, your mind, your body, and even kill you." '_Not to mention Greater Break Item only breaks Items, and Slave Collars aren't considered items._'

Nanana smirked at him slyly. '_You made all that up didn't you?_'

'_Just mostly. Until just now I wasn't entirely certain Greater Break Item would even work._'

She responded with a playful pout. '_If you start getting any better at presenting yourself we might need this link much longer._'

'_Oh? Don't like our private chats anymore?_'

'_Not what I said at all,_' she huffed.

Turning to the others, Diablo admonished, "Now, if you're all done goofing around, I have work to do. Moedred's sword won't finish itself," he remarked as he walked into the back.

Mordred, however, blinked in confusion. "Wait, Moedred?"

* * *

Some time later, Diablo sighed as he stood in the forge, finishing the last details on the weapon, and nodded to himself. "There… that should do."

"Ooh… what's it called?" Shera cooed as she looked over the weapon.

Diablo hummed in thought. "Hm… Clarent, and it's for Moedred."

Nanana chuckled in mild amusement. '_Seriously? Clarent? You certainly know your history._'

Diablo just shrugged as he walked into the main area with the sword. '_I had a lot of mythological aspects in SAO, so I had to do a little research._'

'_Ah. Wait, what?_'

"Moedred!" he called out, not hearing Nanana's question.

"It's Mordred," the blonde grumbled as she walked up to him.

"That's what I said."

"No it isn't."

"Yes it is, Moedred."

"You did it again!" she snapped.

"I just said your name."

Moluka and Megumin watched the exchange, entertained.

"… This is kind of adorable…"

"Yeah…"

Diablo happened to hear the two whispering and looked at them curiously.

"Nothing, nothing," Moluka dismissed. "Please, continue."

"Right…" Turning his attention back to Mordred, he displayed the sword to her.

Mordred's eyes widened as she looked over the blade, a deep grey blade accentuated with blood red highlights, a crescent-shaped hand-guard, and engraved red star near the tip.

"This is the sword I crafted for you. Clarent."

"Amazing…" she muttered as she looked it over.

Smiling to himself, Diablo prepared the other items. "Fikuma, Moluka, come here."

Curious, the two approached him.

"Yes?" the black-haired girl wondered.

Diablo pulled out a pair of large, spike, deep black gauntlets. "Here, Ebony Bracers."

"Wh – Whoa…" she muttered in shock as she put the armor on her arms. "It feels sturdy, but not really heavy."

"Well?"

"They're perfect!" she exclaimed before slamming her fists together with excitement.

"Good." Turning his attention to Moluka, he frowned slightly. "I was unable to craft anything for you that met my specifications."

The girl's gaze traveled to the floor at that admission, before he pulled out a large silver staff with a multi-colored jewel at the tip.

"Instead, you'll have this. The Sage's Crystal Staff. It can withstand casting up to Eighth Tier magic."

Her glasses nearly fell off her face. "E – Eighth Tier!?"

"Is that too low?"

"N – Not at all!" she exclaimed. "I can still barely cast Third Tier magic!"

"I see. We will need to work on that then."

Staring at him silently, she suddenly collapsed and fainted.

"H – Huh…?"

'_Geez…_' Nanana grumbled over their private connection.

'_Something wrong, Nanana?_'

'_People here can only cast up to Sixth Tier magic normally, remember?_'

'_Oh._' As he mulled over that thought, he noticed Prelsina looking at him unsurely. "Yes, Prelsina?"

Gulping, she nervously darted her gaze around the room. "D – D – Do you… have anything for me…?"

"Yes," he answered before pulling out a large roll of fabric. "This is a Canvas Talisman. It's a powerful Catalyst for casting Miracles."

Prelsina awed over the tightly wrapped roll. "I can feel the energy coming off it just from looking at it…"

Nanana looked at him wryly. '_Just giving away old Items, eh Momo?_'

'_They're still powerful, even if I don't use them anymore._'

"So what now?" Wiz questioned.

"I need to start making items we can sell and dispose of what we can't."

"Eehh!?"

Trying to ignore her screams, Diablo's attention was taken by a large red crystal sitting on one of the shelves. "… Wiz…"

"Huh?"

"Why do you have a Bloodstone here?"

"Belial said it might be a good idea to sell pieces of it."

Diablo sighed as he took the stone from the shelf.

"Eh!?"

"Having a whole Bloodstone here is too dangerous. Some fool is bound to get it and go insane."

Megumin and the others watched the exchange curiously.

"Erm, Diablo…?" Shera questioned.

"Yes?"

"Do you and Wiz know each other from somewhere else?"

Diablo winced slightly at the question. "… Why do you ask that?"

"Well, you two are talking like you're really familiar with each other."

'_Why does she have to be so good at picking up things like that…_' "I am merely treating an expert mage such as her like this because I feel it is the only to deal with her. I also know a thing or two concerning some of the items she is selling."

"Oh… that makes sense."

Diablo's expression remained the same, but he sighed in relief in his mind.

The conversation was broken up when Sylvie suddenly barged into the shop, sweating and exhausted.

"Something wrong?"

"Extremely!" she exclaimed before pulling out a letter to give to Diablo. "The elven kingdom of Greenwood has demanded Princess Shera's immediate return, or they'll declare war!"

Diablo twitched an eyebrow angrily. "They have the nerve to try and force my Familia member back there? I guess I should have sent a much more meaningful warning to them then."

Growling, Rem snapped, "War? Are they insane?"

Sylvie just shrugged in exhausted bewilderment. "Who can say… The governor of Faltra asked me to recommend a group of Adventurers I trust to try and prevent that outcome."

Diablo nodded as he read the letter. "Then I will do my utmost to… convince them not to." Diablo turned to his side as Shera grabbed his arm with desperation in her eyes.

"Diablo, please… I don't want anyone to get hurt…"

Before he could say anything, Sylvie continued. "Unfortunately, that's not the only problem. The prince of Greenwood put a two million Val bounty on Shera's return."

Diablo's face went completely blank of emotion for several moments before his eyes practically lit up with fury. "_What_? He put a bounty on his own sister?! That fucking disgusting filth!"

Raphtalia slinked behind Nanana in fear of Diablo's outburst.

"Yeah, I know," Sylvie lamented with a groan. "The governor wants the war to be averted at any cost, and he said there are two ways he knows of doing that."

"Oh…?" Diablo prodded, getting a feeling he would not like her explanation.

"The simplest is just to hand Shera over to them."

Diablo responded with a silent glower.

Sylvie lurched back and put her hands up. "D – Don't worry, I assured him that wasn't an option!"

"Good. Otherwise you'd need a new Governor."

Sighing, Sylvie mumbled under her breath, "Maybe that wouldn't be a bad thing…"

"Did you say something?" Diablo asked, not quite hearing her.

"N – No, nothing," she stammered, shaking her head.

"Anything else?" Nanana asked.

"Huh?" she questioned, not sure what she was asking.

"Any other intel for us?"

"Um… no…" she muttered, one of her ears drooping in confusion.

Diablo sighed and rebuffed, "How does he expect us to stop the war if we have no information? Short of killing the instigator."

Frowning slightly, Sylvie just shrugged. "I don't know, but that's all the information he gave me."

Diablo folded his arms in annoyance. "If that's the case, then we may need to speak with him directly."

Both of her ears fell back as she paled.

"Something wrong, Guild Representative?"

She put her hands up in an attempt to placate him. "Th – Think this over carefully. The governor, Chester Ray Galford, he was one of the heroes of the previous war. He's not someone you want to take lightly, even as a god."

He growled back, "He is treating my Familia like pawns by not informing us. That greatly displeases me. So either you can ask him for more information, or I will."

"R – Right. I – I'll take you there…" she stammered weakly.

"Good."

As they prepared to leave the shop, Sylvie turned back to him and urged, "Now, do your best not to upset the governor, it won't make life any easier for us."

"That will remain to be seen. But before I leave…" he trailed off as he pulled out the staff the Archangel Flames are stored in. "Summon, four Archangel Flames."

On command four of the mechanical angels appeared in a burst of light.

"E – Eh…?" Sylvie stuttered in surprise.

Looking at the four summons, Diablo commanded, "Attack anyone that approaches Shera or any other member of my Familia with hostile, greedy, or lustful intent."

As they responded with a mechanical hum, Sylvie retorted frantically, "M – Most of the ones taking the bounties would be other Adventurers, you can't just kill them!"

Diablo coldly argued, "They should have thought of that before taking the bounty."

Sylvie gaped in shock.

"After all, I will end anyone that threatens my Familia. I don't care who they are. Just be grateful I do not add my Death Knight or Dominion Authority to the guard detail. These ones can at least kill just the one causing the problem and not create zombies or turn the entire city into a crater."

"R – Right…"

"Unless of course, you want me to bring out them as well."

"No!" she shouted firmly.

"Then this shall be the guard detail."

"Fine…" she replied, giving up the argument.

* * *

Diablo looked around the edge of the city in thought as he and the others followed Sylvie to the governor's home.

"Okay, wait here, I'll get the guards to let us through," Sylvie explained and ran up to the guard at the front gate.

Diablo nodded in understanding and waited, before noticing the intricate and elaborate armor the guards wore. '_Those aren't the normal rank-and-file guards. Those are royal guards._'

With a shrug, Nanana answered, '_Well he is the governor of this province._'

'_But such guards should be for royalty, not governors._'

Their conversation was cut short as one of the guards took note of Diablo and the others and approached them. "Hey, you there, demon."

Diablo looked around in mild curiosity before the man pointed his spear at him.

"You."

One of the Flames dashed in front of Diablo, startling the guard, only for Diablo to raise a hand and get it to stand down. "I am no demon."

"You have horns, don't you? You may be shorter than the average demon, but you're still a demon."

"Do you mean Draph?" Megumin asked, confused and annoyed.

The guard huffed dismissively. "I refuse to call them that. They're demons."

Nanana frowned slightly and glanced at Diablo, '_This whole country sure seems prejudiced against Draphs._'

"Annoying," he groaned.

"What's that?!" the guard shouted, unprovoked as he readied his weapon.

"Stop it, you're embarrassing yourself, I'd rather not have to deal with such a sight while I have business here."

"I'm not afraid of you, demon!"

Diablo pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration and shooed the man away with a hand. "Ugh… I really don't want to end up destroying the city, so go away."

"You're going to destroy the city?! I knew it!"

Diablo's frustration was only growing deeper at the man. "I am not, as my Familia is set up here you annoying bug."

"Bug?! So you're going to crush me?!" he shouted back, raising his spear.

'_DON'T GIVE ME IDEAS! BECAUSE I AM THIS CLOSE FROM SPLATTERING YOU LIKE ONE!_' Diablo hollered in his mind as his rage was reaching boiling point.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Sylvie cried out as she ran up to the situation, finally done speaking with the other guard. "He's with me!"

"H – Huh?" the guard stuttered.

"This is Diablo, he's the god of the Diablo Familia."

He stared at her incredulously before she displayed a document to him.

"See? I have permission for him to be here."

Growling under his breath, he opened the gate and demanded, "… Fine. Get in there."

Rem frowned in concern as the group walked past the gates, only to find the property on the other side a vast change from the surrounding city. There was a large garden on both sides of the walkway, a small creek flowing peacefully through the center, a large house near the back of plot of land, and a large, blocky building at the center that was clearly an office of some kind.

"Whoa… the estate is so pretty…" Shera cooed.

Nodding in agreement, Rem noted, "It's rather well kept for a man who seems so officious."

"Agreed," Diablo noted plainly.

As they walked, however, Shera took note of the numerous maids and butlers that dotted the area, working on maintaining the greenery or keeping the cobblestone clean. "… They all look so unhappy…"

'_Indeed…_' Diablo agreed silently.

"Here's the main office," Sylvie explained, motioning to the large, brick-shaped building at the center of the property.

As the large doors opened, they were greeted by a petite girl with light brown twintails and matching chestnut eyes, wearing a plain black dress with white frills. "I'm Titta, head maid," she greeted almost mechanically.

Diablo frowned in concern at the girl. '_Cute… but she looks sad… This governor must be responsible…_'

"I'll take you to governor Galford," Titta noted before motioning to the back of the building.

Diablo did his best to present a pleasant smile. "Thank you Ms. Titta."

A small, momentary shift appeared on her countenance before she turned around, heading down the long main hall, past a large number of various doors and smaller pathways, eventually stopping at a set of huge double doors near the back of the building. Knocking on the doors, she announced, "Sir Galford, I brought the Guild Representative and her companions."

A gruff voice from within ordered, "Fine, you may leave."

Flinching slightly, the girl bowed and pushed open the doors before leaving.

As the group walked in, they saw Galford himself, a tall, dark-haired man with greying hair swept back, clad in a stark white military uniform with a saber at his side. Turning to the group, he questioned bluntly, "So, is it finished?"

Sylvie blinked curiously at his question. "Eh? Well, Diablo here has agreed to take on the quest."

"I see," he remarked curtly before turning his back to them. "Then solve this matter quickly. Report to me when it's done."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow at his questioning. '_Wait, so that "is it finished" was about the quest? We just got it today with no intel, what does this jackass expect?!_' "And what _is_ the Quest?"

Galford turned to face the group properly, staring disinterestedly at Sylvie. "Could you not even tell them that much on your own?"

"You didn't tell any details…" she argued meekly.

"I gave you all the information you needed."

Wincing, she tried her best to speak up. "Actually, we were hoping to get some more…"

The man sighed in frustration. "I see. So Adventurers truly can't be relied upon then. You may swagger about town, but as soon as something difficult pops up, you make excuses and hide. I see it will be up to the army to finish this then."

Sylvie frantically tried to placate him. "N – No, not at all! We won't be running away!"

"Then hurry up and get rid of these elves," he ordered coldly.

Diablo snarled quietly. '_How the hell did this fool become a Governor?!_'

Sylvie stumbled and stammered over her words. "W – Well… er… ah! How about a little self-introduction?"

Galford narrowed his eyes in disappointment. "They do not know who I am?"

"W – Well, Diablo and Nanana haven't been in Faltra very long."

"Indeed," Diablo interjected, "and I'm already beginning to dislike you."

Sylvie choked on her breath at his statement.

"I don't care. My goal is to protect this city and its people, and I don't care if you're a god or a demon lord."

Diablo huffed dismissively. "I would be more inclined to believe you if your people were happy."

"Happiness and safety are not the same thing."

"If they are happy, then they will gladly do what is right making it easier to ensure their safety. If they are miserable it breeds desperation."

Galford just shrugged. "And if they act out of turn I will deal with them. Just as I dealt with the armies of Mammon."

'_… What…?_' Diablo growled in his mind.

Sighing, Galford went ahead and introduced himself properly. "Regardless, while you are in this province, remember this. I, Lieutenant General Chester Ray Galford, am the one who commands this province, my rule is law."

"So you're the one who stood around doing nothing when the Fallen set siege to your city and your wall."

"By the time I received reports of the situation, it had already been handled."

"How lucky for you," Diablo retorted with disgust.

Staring at the man with a flat expression, Nanana questioned, '_We're gonna take over this place. Aren't we?_'

'_In due time._'

Rem stepped forward to try and remedy the situation, "My name is Rem Galleu, and I know he comes off as rude but –" but was cut off by the officious man.

"I'm already aware Adventurers have no sense of manners, Miss Galleu."

Mordred, her temper finally having hit its peak, stepped out from the others and snapped back, "This, coming from you?"

Galford confidently retorted, "Watch your tongue. You may be princess in Lautreamont, but here you are little more than hired help."

Her eyebrow twitched with a furious snarl.

The elderly man then turned his attention to Rem. "Ms. Galleu, I have to wonder. The Mage's Guild has extended you offers numerous times, and yet you declined them all. Surely you don't intend to be a measly Adventurer forever."

Diablo finally interjected, with his temper beginning to boil. "You should really stop demeaning the title of Adventurer in such a way. After all, they do what soldiers and guards lack the courage and skill to do."

"Such as threaten the guards at my estate, destroy the Bridge of Ulug, and cause severe damage to the buildings of the southern quarter with magic," Galford rebuffed with derision.

"There was a reason behind all of that!" Shera argued desperately.

The officer huffed through his nose. "The fact remains you don't deny it happened."

Pointing towards him, Diablo growled, "Your guards started it, meaning they are ill disciplined, the bridge was destroyed to ensure possible Fallen reinforcements didn't push through while I returned to Faltra to deal with a powerful infiltrator using the body of a excommunicated Mage Guild member, and said damage to the buildings was caused in stopping said infiltrator's rampage."

He just shrugged. "You should have found a way to deal with them without damaging the infrastructure."

Diablo hit back, "That is not always an option. At least if your goal is to protect lives and not buildings. Buildings are easy to replace after all. Lives and good help aren't."

Galford huffed quietly before changing the subject. "Before I answer you, I want one question answered. The rumor is that you are a Demon Lord from another world. Is that accurate?"

"And if it is? What will you try to do?"

"I merely wished to know. I don't care what you are, human, demon, Demon Lord, or God. Are you an asset to me, or a liability?"

"I believe I am the one who should be asking that question, mortal," Diablo growled.

* * *

**Yes, I know, cliffhanger ending! Don't worry, you'll be getting the resolution soon. Hopefully everyone enjoyed the chapter, be sure to let me know with a review if you did. If you were confused, unsure, or just have questions on anything, leave your queries as a review and I will do what I can to address them in the next reviewer response. If you did not enjoy the chapter, review if you must, but English please, it's the only language read and any other language will be resoundingly ignored. That said, until next time, bye-bye!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter XI**

**And here we are yet again. I know, Demon Lord's Adventurers again. Surprised, are you not? The obvious aside, it appears that my brain is glued to this story and will be for the foreseeable future, so look forward to more. Hopefully everyone enjoyed the previous chapter, it is certainly looking that way from the reviews, which is always good to know. Do be sure and let me know if you enjoy this one as well. I would like to thank Bakuto as well for his aid in this insanity my brain has concocted. Enough babbling, on with the reviewer responses!**

**Thanos69: I'm sure this may come across as blasphemy, but Skyrim is actually the only Elder Scrolls game I've ever played besides a momentary dabble into Daggerfall. But yeah, despite the quote on the box, Skyrim's quests aren't truly limitless. Eventually they become just an endless repeat of the same three or four fetch quests.**

**Skull Flame: Good to know.**

**No one except maybe a braindead Otaku.**

**Don't worry, Neuronist will be getting plenty of toys soon.**

**You know it.**

**ObsidianUnknown66: I have a bad habit of doing cliffhangers. Moedred for the win indeed. There's quite a few high-ranking nobles that won't be around much longer.**

**METALHELLSPWN: I'm sure it'll be a cackle heard 'round the world.**

**DreamWeaverGod: Well his "buttons" will be getting broken very soon.**

**Can't promise those doods will get the fate they deserve just yet, but it will come.**

**Lawoi: Intense is what I was aiming for.**

**Only in some aspects. For example, I prefer DanMachi's Demeter over Fate's.**

**correnhimself316: Both coming soon courtesy of your favorite horned Demon Lord.**

**duskrider: No, Aqua is worthless. This guy is some special insult not known to human tongues.**

**Phew! That was quite a few! Not a bad thing at all, I appreciate all the interaction, so keep it coming! That said, now for why you are all really here.**

* * *

Galford urged, "I merely wished to know. I don't care what you are, human, demon, Demon Lord, or God. Are you an asset to me, or a liability?"

"I believe I am the one who should be asking that question, mortal," Diablo growled. "After all you have been nothing if not antagonistic."

"Because you're wasting time in here when you should be out there dealing with the elves," Galford scoffed.

Diablo finally lost his temper and slammed his fist on the table in the center of the room, cracking it. "How the hell do you expect us to do that when you haven't given us any information!? Things like this need detailed information in order to be completed!"

Galford stared silently at Diablo, nonplussed, as Sylvie looked from side to side in frantic fear, Diablo just sending scowls at the man.

Nanana sighed and spun on her heel. "Let's just go. This guy is just about useless, and we need to sort out this whole thing with Greenwood. Because this guy obviously has no clue."

Galford finally sighed in annoyance and pulled out a map that he unrolled onto his desk. "If you're that insistent."

Nanana raised an intrigued eyebrow. '_Hoh? Looks like being ignored is his weakness._'

'_Indeed,_' Diablo agreed.

Pointing to a spot on the map, he explained, "Here, on the Eastern Lakefront, some of the knights have reported elf sightings. Do you understand the layout of that area?"

Diablo nodded confidently. "Perfectly." '_Though considering how things seem to have changed slightly, the layouts here might not be identical to the maps in the game._'

Nanana nodded subtly. '_Yep. Like how Betas are different from the full release._'

Galford continued, "I cannot say how many elves are there for sure."

Diablo raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. "You haven't even sent a team to look?"

"Even if I sent a reconnaissance team, this is an enemy specializing in stealth attacks. The witness who originally found them was a townsman there fishing, who managed to escape with his life. He claims to have seen at least twenty elves, but I have no doubt there are more."

"I see," Diablo noted as he examined the map carefully from where he stood.

"Considering the size and influence of Greenwood, they could easily amass a force of over a hundred, but if they did, I doubt they could hide it. I don't expect there to be more than one hundred elves there. That is all the information I have."

Diablo folded his arms in derision. "Much better than no information at all. I would hope you wouldn't send your men in with such a lack of information as before."

Galford huffed through his nose. "I wouldn't send them at all. Sending them to fight a group of elves in a forest, I would likely lose countless men."

Narrowing his eyes, Diablo theorized, "Which is why you wish to use us."

"Which wouldn't be necessary on either front if you simply handed the princess over," Galford argued as he rested a hand on his sword.

Shera stared up at Diablo in worry, who put a hand on her shoulder and responded bluntly, "Would you hand over a member of your family to a rapist?"

"I'm not the one in that position. Is the princess truly that important to you?"

"Don't ask such a foolish question. She belongs to me. I have no intention of handing her over to people who would only use her."

Galford remained silent for a moment before closing his eyes with a nod. "I see. On that, we can agree. I have no intention of yielding to the likes of elves."

Diablo frowned slightly at his response.

The greying man then turned his attention to the busty elf in question. "I also had a question for you."

Shera blinked curiously, shuffling closer to Diablo. "For me…? What is it?"

"What could you possibly want so badly that would make you throw away your life of luxury, going so far as to take on the life of an Adventurer? Or, perhaps, did you have a reason you couldn't stay in your homeland?"

At that, Nanana tilted her head in thought. '_Come to think of it, where _is_ Greenwood…_'

Diablo felt a small drop of sweat fall down his head. '_I… don't actually know… I don't think anyone in Ainz Ooal Gown really bothered trying to find it._'

Shera clutched her hands tightly near her heart. "I… I wanted freedom. I wanted to know my own worth, not just my worth to the bloodline."

"Wow…" Megumin mumbled in understanding.

"I see," Galford answered, digesting the information. "From a poor man's perspective, it seems as though you lived in the lap of luxury. But I suppose everyone has their own circumstances and reasons."

"So you understand?" Shera asked, slightly hopeful.

Galford shook his head coldly. "No. I cannot sympathize with you. I will, however, remember it as valuable information."

Diablo narrowed his eyes in suspicion. '_I don't like the sound of that… At fucking all…_' Wrapping his arm around her tighter, Diablo urged, "You needn't seek sympathy from others. Put yourself through as many hardships as you see fit, exert yourself as much as you need, and push yourself to as many limits as you desire. Savor the fruits of labor that you earn with your own two hands. In short, live as an Adventurer."

Galford could only scoff at the display.

Rem put a hand on her chin in thought. "Damn… if only we had some kind of 'treasure' of equal value to Shera, we could at least consider negotiations."

Stepping away from Diablo slightly, Shera puffed her chest out proudly. "I wasn't called the 'most valuable asset of the elves' for nothing, after all! I don't think there's anything that could replace me!"

Rem's tail twitched angrily. "… On second thought, we should just return this dumb elf. For peace, if nothing else."

Shera gasped at Rem in shock. "What?! Why are you mad all of a sudden!?"

Diablo gently rapped Rem on the head. "Rem, stop being jealous of her. You still have plenty of time to grow."

Rem winced before turning aside, her ears drooping.

Nodding to himself, Galford stated, "So, you will not turn over Princess Shera, but will instead take other measures to avoid a war with the Kingdom of Greenwood. The reward for such shall be paid through the Adventurers' Guild – understood?"

"Understood," Diablo answered.

"That's all I have to say as Faltra's governor. However, the royal capital of Re-Estize has dispatched one of their own to watch over the matter."

"Oh?"

"Come in," Galford called before the large double doors opened and a new figure walked in.

A tall, slim young woman with dark, almost blood red hair, bright ruby eyes tucked behind a pair of frameless glasses, and overly fair skin, clad in elaborate silver and white armor that hugged her generous curves tightly, a pleated blue miniskirt, a red waist-cape hanging to her feet, covered by thigh-high leg armor that left just a portion of her soft thighs exposed. Bowing formally, she introduced, "Alicia Cristela, an Imperial Knight."

Diablo stiffened slightly where he stood as he looked at the alluring knight. '_… First, a female Imperial Knight? Second, she's so pretty…_'

Nanana jabbed him in the ribs softly. '_Hey, don't start swooning yet. We don't even know what she is like._'

Alicia continued, "His majesty has bestowed upon me the duty of resolving the conflict with the Kingdom of Greenwood. Please, forgive me of my inexperience, but I will do my absolute best to be of use to you all. I look forward to working with you."

Any sense of wonder left Diablo's face in a flash. '_And just like that I am on my guard…_'

Nanana nodded slightly in mutual concern. '_Agreed. That intro is way too perfect._'

Walking up to her, Rem noted in surprise, "A female Imperial Knight is extremely rare."

Shera nodded with equal surprise. "I know, right? I always thought of the Imperial knights as being human guys."

Mordred twitched an eyebrow and commented, "… Right here," though it was clear she was ignored.

Alicia just smiled to them both. "I know it is unusual, but I am quite fortunate."

'_How is it unusual?!_'

"I face my own problems as a woman. Though I'm certain I wouldn't face them in Melromarc."

"You wouldn't in Lautreamont either," Mordred interjected, not liking being in the background.

Alicia turned to her directly with a nod. "Ah, yes, I hear Lautreamont doesn't distinguish on gender in roles of authority. I have heard of many of your accomplishments, Mordred."

Mordred raised an eyebrow at her rather curt addressment. "No title?"

"I can tell from what I've heard of you, and from just meeting you that you find the nature of titles and such to be pains, so I figure it's easier to communicate without them."

"… A – Ah," Mordred mumbled, taken aback by her assessment, Diablo and Nanana, meanwhile, narrowed their eyes suspiciously at her.

"Miss Rem, I understand you face your own hardships as well."

Rem tensed and backed away a couple steps. "… R – Really? What makes you say that?"

"Just a guess on my part. You're a very capable Summoner with seven Summons, and yet you refuse to work with the Mage's Guild or the governor. So I assume you must have your own reasons for doing so."

Nanana's suspicions were becoming annoyance. '_This girl is far too informed on our members, Diablo._'

Rem frowned suspiciously at the redhead.

Alicia continued, "Don't worry, I have no intention of prying into your personal matters, I simply wish to help deal with the situation facing Faltra."

Rem nodded slowly, keeping her eyes on her. "… Alright…"

Putting a hand up delicately, she added, "But you too are a citizen of Faltra, and Re-Estize. If I can be of any help to you whatsoever, please feel free to consult with me. Though I may have duties as a Knight, I worry especially about those who keep their struggles to themselves. You do not need to force yourself to tell me your secret, though."

Diablo ordered bluntly, '_Keep a sharp eye on her at all times._'

Nanana nodded firmly. '_Way ahead of you. This girl gives me a bad feeling._'

Alicia turned her attention to Shera with a bright smile. "Miss Shera, I'm sure you're going through a lot right now, but let's do our best to make everyone happy."

Shera blithely pumped a fist in the air. "Yeah!"

'_There's no doubt she's a master at talking to people. Maybe even at manipulating them,_' Diablo noted.

Alicia then turned to Sylvie and pulled a large pouch of coins out of her pack. "This is an expression of sympathy from the king."

"A – Ah… thanks," Sylvie stuttered in mild surprise.

Alicia then approached Megumin and took one of her hands with a smile. "It'll make me much more comfortable having such a powerful mage as a Crimson Devil alongside us."

"O – Of course!" Megumin exclaimed, feigning absolute confidence.

The redhead then turned to Darkness with a formal bow. "I'm glad to have a fellow knight along for this quest. I hope I don't get in your way."

Darkness just nodded silently to her.

Diablo would not let the redhead out of his sight for a second. '_… She knows far too much about our party._'

'_Yeah…_' Nanana agreed.

Alicia then approached Aqua with a bow just shy of a kneel. "I know such a situation must be tense for a goddess to be involved with."

Diablo widened his eyes in shocked worry. '_… How does she know that? No one other than those in our group and dumbass does. This woman is… highly suspicious…_'

'_Can you cloak one of the Flames?_' Nanana questioned.

'_Easily,_' he answered before waving a hand subtly, one of the Archangel Flames vanishing in a shimmer.

'_Might be a good idea to have one keep an eye on her._'

'_Agreed._'

Alicia then set her attention on Diablo and walked up to him, grabbing his left hand with a sense of awe.

Diablo stood silently, waiting for her to speak. "… Yes?"

Taking the cue, she explained, "I'd like to personally thank you for everything you did."

He blinked a couple times in confusion. "Eh?"

"I heard about how you stopped Gregore from terrorizing the people of the city."

Diablo's eyes narrowed suspiciously. '_… If she knows so much about everyone else, how does she not know the truth of that?_'

'_She might be testing you,_' Nanana noted.

"It was nothing," Diablo returned with a confident smirk.

Alicia stared at him for a moment, her expression unwavering before shifting to a smile. "I also heard of your battle with the hundred Fallen at the Bridge of Ulug. As an Imperial Knight tasked with protecting the people, I can't possibly thank you enough."

Nanana narrowed her eyes and ran over the scene before her. '_… Simple words for Shera, skipping straight to money with Sylvie, offering her sympathies to Rem without seemingly knowing what her plight is, praising Megumin's Crimson Devil heritage, accepting and believing Aqua's godhood, showing kinship with Darkness, treating Mordred as nothing more than a fellow warrior, and showing awe and fealty to you. She's a master at reading people._'

'_Indeed…_' Diablo noted before Alicia made her way to Nanana.

Smiling, Alicia offered, "I know all of this sudden change must be difficult for someone in your situation."

"Oh?" Nanana asked in timid curiosity.

"Being from another world, I mean."

'_Okay, this woman is dangerously and highly suspiciously informed._'

'_Indeed,_' Diablo noted before motioning a hand subtly, an Archangel Flame hovering behind her.

"So…" Nanana mumbled before Galford spoke up, annoyed.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have a meeting to attend."

Diablo sighed. '_Which is code for get lost._' "Fine."

* * *

After leaving Galford's estate, Sylvie sighed in heavy relief before turning to Diablo. "I'm going to head back to the Adventurer's Guild. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask."

He just shrugged his shoulders. "I don't see a need for it, but your concern is appreciated."

After a moment's thought, Sylvie walked closer to him and beckoned him towards her, at which point he bent down to get closer. "I know it's not something you would worry about, but do your best not to kill anyone. As an Imperial Knight, Cristela could start an investigation, and interrogations would separate you from Shera for who knows how long."

He glanced back at Alicia then to Sylvie. "I see. Anything else?"

Sylvie frowned slightly in disappointment to his reaction. "Just be careful. You don't need the imperial knights running an investigation, you'd get separated from Shera."

Standing back up straight, he rebuffed, "I have a plan don't worry."

"Right…" she answered before turning and running off towards the Guild.

Diablo frowned slightly as he watched her petite, almost childlike form sprint away in her outfit consisting of little more than a few strips of fabric. '_… That outfit just seems wrong when she looks so much like a kid… It'd be much better on an adult body._'

Alicia then approached him and questioned, "So what shall we do now?"

"Return to our home, set up defenses to ensure no one is foolish enough to even consider attacking my Familia, and then I will head to the forest alone."

Alicia frowned in concern. "I don't think that is safe."

Diablo huffed dismissively. "It would be unsafe if anyone went with me. After all, then I'd have to hold back."

"Ah."

* * *

Upon returning to the shop, Diablo sat in his room upstairs, staring at a pile of papers in thought.

"What ya thinking about?" Shera asked behind him.

"Ideas for little Raphtalia's future. Mostly training plans."

The elf blinked a few times, her ears twitching in thought. "Huh?"

"What?" Blinking in thought, he finally realized Shera was there, as he was too focused on his work.

After a few seconds of thought, Shera asked, "Diablo?"

"Y – Yes?"

"I'm hungry."

"Ah. Then I'll get you something to eat."

"Yay!" she cheered, throwing her arms in the air, causing her breasts to nearly pop out of her top.

* * *

Later, the group left the shop, Shera humming happily before addressing Diablo. "So, where will we eat?"

"Wherever you want to go, so that I can get back to my work."

"Somewhere quiet, preferably," Rem interjected.

Shera blinked in thought before smiling. "Oh, how about –"

Their conversation was interrupted as a small ball was thrown between the group and exploded, shooting out a cloud of smoke in all directions.

Diablo snarled and charged his mana, before he heard Shera's cries.

"Hey! What are you doing! Put me down! Kya!"

"_Shera_!" he bellowed before waving a hand. "Wind Feather!" Three large bursts of wind then shot out in all directions, clearing the area of smoke. With clearance now, Diablo saw Shera tied up and being carried by two short Grasswalker men. "Paralyze Shout!" he howled, before a bolt of yellow energy shot forward, narrowly missing the duo as they ducked down an alleyway. "Damn you…!" he snarled before making to give chase, only to get cut off as a Pantherian and Dwarf in heavy armor jumped out and blocked his path. "Unless you want to die, move it!"

"Didn't think we'd make it that easy fer ya, did ya?" the Dwarf snapped back as he readied an ax.

Growling, Diablo summoned Gram into his grasp. "Obviously you lot are tired of living, for taking a rapist's pay."

The Pantherian snapped back, "With two million Vals, I wouldn't have to work another day in my life."

Diablo huffed before raising his blade. "That's how my method ends as well." He swung the blade wide as the two rushed him, only for their headless corpses to collapse to the ground. "Pitiful trash. Fireball," he cast, turning their bodies to ash.

Alicia stared at the events unfolding in front of her with shock.

Diablo turned back to her and retorted, "You will agree that they were aiding in crime, will you not?"

"Y – Yeah…" she answered, shocked.

"Greater Speed!" he called out before his body was bathed in green light. Taking off at a sprint, he practically vanished.

"Whoa…" Megumin gaped with the others.

* * *

"Put me down!" Shera demanded as the two Grasswalkers had her tied up, slung over their shoulders.

"This girl is heavy Big Brother," the first one grumbled.

Nodding, the second agreed, "Yes she is, Little Brother."

"I'm not heavy!" Shera shouted back, flailing her legs.

"She is way fatter than I thought elves were supposed to be," the first one groaned, only for both of them to pale as Diablo's voice filled their ears.

"Sheeraaa!" he howled as he dashed towards them.

Shera smiled in joy as she saw him running to save her.

"Oh no, he's gaining on us Big Brother," the younger Grasswalker lamented in a stale voice.

"I can see that Little Brother. Less talking more running."

As the duo rounded a corner towards their escape, a leg swept from the side and caught them, tripping them and sending them to the ground, Shera tumbling.

"You aren't very nice people kidnapping a young girl like that," said a motherly voice in an almost frightening tone.

Hissing, the younger Grasswalker pulled a dagger to strike at his attacker, only to get hit on the back of the head with the end of a sword's sheath.

"There. Now be good boys and stay there."

Diablo slid to a stop at the scene and saw the one who had taken down the would-be kidnappers. A very short woman, shorter even than Megumin, with flowing, bright pink hair, one side of her bangs covering one of her mysterious violet eyes, short, pointed ears barely poking out from underneath her hair, large, curved horns adorning the sides of her head, wearing an extremely short black dress with a white coat that had gold straps barely holding it on over her impressively large bust, long, fingerless gloves, knee-high brown boots, and in her grasp a sword with a handle nearly as long as the blade. "Whoa…"

"Are you okay?" The woman turned her attention to Shera, as the blonde attempted to break the ropes around her wrists. "There," she breathed as she swiped her blade, cutting the ropes and freeing the elf.

"Shera!" Diablo called out as he ran up to her.

"Diablo!" she cried back as she grabbed his arm in fear.

Patting her head gently, he finally took full notice of the pint-sized beauty. "Huh?"

She just hummed with a pleasant smile as she walked up to him.

Frowning slightly, he decided appreciation was at least in order. "You have my thanks for helping her."

The woman shook her head with a smile. "No need to worry. It is my duty to help those in need."

Diablo looked over her small, voluptuous body in mild confusion. '_She's so short… and those horns… is she a Draph? And those boobs…_'

Seeing his mild confusion, she tilted her head in worry. "Is… something wrong?"

"N – No," he stuttered uncharacteristically.

"Diabl –!" Megumin shouted as she ran around the corner faster than she could control, slamming into him from behind and flopping to the ground.

"Megumin?"

"Ow…" she moaned as she stood up, rubbing her nose in discomfort, before laying eyes on Shera's savior and puffing her lips in a pout. "… Draphs are unfair…"

"Pardon?" the horned woman asked with confusion.

Pointing at her, Megumin exclaimed, "You're as tall as me but your boobs are huge!"

"O – Oh…" she mumbled, not sure how to respond.

Diablo responded for her by whacking Megumin on the head.

"Owie!" the petite mage cried out.

Bowing slightly to the sword-wielding woman, Diablo offered, "Sorry about the Crimson Devil. She has breast envy I believe."

She shook her head with a mature smile. "No, no, it's fine. Most members of other races comment on it. Though from my point of view, you're an odd one."

"Excuse me?"

"You're rather short for a Draph, aren't you?"

Nanana snarked back, "Says the woman who barely breaks one hundred-forty Celch."

Said woman just looked at her in confusion. "What's unusual about my height?"

Nodding, Rem added, "Yeah, Draphs are normally very small. In… most aspects," she trailed off, landing her eyes on the Draph's most noticeable aspect, "while the males tend to tower over others."

As they spoke, one of the Grasswalkers began to shakily get to his feet, only for the Draph woman to spin on her heel with blinding speed, striking him on the head and knocking him unconscious once more before returning to previous stance, all within the blink of an eye.

Diablo was taken aback at the display. '_I almost couldn't see that it was so fast. I want her…_'

Nanana just sent an incredulous look at him, Moluka asked, "What's a Draph doing around here? Aren't you aware what Faltra thinks of Demihumans?"

"Indeed," Darkness added in worry.

Sighing, the Draph explained, "In truth? I'm here to join a Familiar to further increase my abilities and I had heard rumors that a new, powerful god was here outside of Orario."

"Why not join one of the easier to find Familias in the city itself?" Nanana questioned.

"Their marks are too limiting. I heard there is a special kind of Falna that doesn't limit your capabilities. Unfortunately I have not found the God yet."

"Well I've got good news for you," Nanana retorted with a grin. "You just saved a member of his Familia."

"Oh?" she asked with a tilt of her head.

Grinning, Nanana slapped Diablo on the back. "Yep! Right Momo?"

Diablo nodded in return. "Shera is one of my Followers, and you saved her from –" he stopped as the Draph jabbed the back of the second Grasswalker's head in the blink of an eye as he attempted to stand, "them. They planned to sell her to a rapist for two million Vals."

She turned her head slightly to the two unconscious men with a cold stare. "Oh…?" However, before her desire for retribution could take over, she put together a realization and looked at Diablo. "Wait, so that means _you_ are the god of this Familia?"

"Yes I am. I am Diablo, god of the Diablo Familia." '_That feels so awkward to say…_'

Smiling, the woman bowed. "I am Narmaya."

"It's good to meet you, and I would gladly let you join as thanks for rescuing Shera here."

Narmaya nodded in appreciation before putting a hand up. "Before I make the ultimate decision on that, I'd like to observe your Familia first."

"By all means," he responded curtly.

She responded with a gracious bow, her globes shifting in her top.

Turning away from her out of mild embarrassment, he then focused on the two unconscious Grasswalkers. "The first thing we need to do is take care of this trash." Opening his hand towards them, he called out, "Chaos Fire Orb!" and a large ball of red-hot energy appeared in his grasp. Before he could move on with his attack, Alicia burst onto the scene, fatigued.

"Wait!"

Frowning slightly, he turned to her.

"They need to be prosecuted, not immediately executed!" she urged.

"And what makes you think that will accomplish anything?"

She froze up at his question. "H – Huh?"

"Scum like this will just slip through the net or be released for just 'doing their job'. Even when that is kidnapping and humanoid trafficking, and I will not let any threats to my Familia like that to live. Any who intend to bring harm to my Familia will not be met with mercy. And if I do not establish that now," he paused, dropping the orb, "they will think they can continue trying to do so."

Alicia watched in shock as the orb exploded into a massive conflagration of flame and pooling magma, the fire and smoke billowing for several long moments before dissipating, the two Grasswalkers having disappeared entirely.

As he watched her stare at the scene, Diablo thought he saw a smile form on her face, but chocked it up to the light from the spell. Turning his attention to Shera, he pushed, "Shera let's go get you something to eat."

"Yahoo!" the elf cheered.

* * *

After gathering everyone in a nearby restaurant, Narmaya looked over the group in thought. "You have quite the Familia already it seems."

"I do, and I am somewhat proud of it," Diablo retorted.

His wording caught her off guard slightly. "Only somewhat?"

Nodding, he explained, "They can always improve. It is my duty to ensure they reach their fullest potential and punish them when they do something monumentally stupid. Which reminds me… Megumin come here."

Turning to him, she approached in mild confusion. "Huh? What is i –?" she asked, only to be interrupted as he cast a spell.

"Greater Seal Magic."

Megumin's entire body trembled as she felt a sudden pressure weigh down on her. "Gurh! Wh – What did you do?!"

"I sealed your magic," he explained coldly.

"Wh – What?! Why?!"

"For breaking my word."

"Eehh!?"

"Not only did you defy me by continuing to practice your Explosion magic on Satan's castle, you dragged Aqua into it. The only reason I haven't punished you as severely as her is because you haven't caused as much trouble. But should you continue to act like this, that will change. Understood?"

Megumin's gaze concentrated harshly on the floor, not answering him.

"I asked you a question."

"… I understand…"

"Good," he answered curtly. "I will release the seal moderately during combat, and if you can prevent from causing trouble for a week, I will unleash the seal completely."

Megumin frowned deeply.

"If I promise someone my Familia won't do something, and they do it, the punishment will be proportional."

"Right…"

Looking around the room, Diablo added, "I expect the same out of the rest of you. If I or any of you give our word on something, and another of you breaks it, you will be punished. And Darkness, that means I will take the Reverse Ring from you."

Darkness covered her hand desperately. "Understood!"

"Good that you do," Diablo noted.

Narmaya smiled and remarked, "You certainly run a tight ship."

"I do now. I was lax with them before, but that almost resulted in this city getting demolished. So now I need a firmer hand in dealing with them to ensure they don't do something that will end in their deaths."

The others felt despondent, Narmaya commenting, "It doesn't help to be too harsh but being too soft can lead to just as many problems."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow as he thought, '_… She says with that massive rack…_'

'_Indeed…_' Nanana agreed.

Sighing, Diablo redirected the conversation. "Now, we're going to take some simple hunting Quests."

"How come?" Darkness questioned.

Looking down at Raphtalia, he patted her on the head gently. "She needs some experience. So we are going to hunt something simple and easy."

The girl looked up at him in worry. "Hunt…?"

"Yes. Just a few small monsters so you can start becoming stronger."

Raphtalia began trembling, Nanana putting a hand on her shoulder with a smile, "Don't worry. We won't let you get hurt. We will make sure to protect you if things go bad. Which they won't."

Looking between the two, she asked in trepidation, "So I… need to kill something…?"

Seeing the source of her worries, Diablo addressed it. "Instead of thinking of it as you needing to kill something, think of it as you protecting others from something harmful. If you're going to protect others, you need to be strong, and the only way to get that strength is to fight. Okay, Raphtalia?"

Raphtalia's gaze cast down at the floor in silence before she nodded. "… Okay…"

Diablo frowned in frustration.

Nanana smiled and urged, "First thing you need is a weapon. So, let's get you one."

"R – Right," Raphtalia answered unsurely.

* * *

After finishing their meal, the group made their way to a blacksmith and began looking over the various weapons.

Diablo stood silently near the door as the girls looked around.

Nanana eventually saw one that caught her eye and presented it to the little raccoon-eared girl. "Hm… here, how about this?"

Taking it, Raphtalia stumbled slightly as she held the full weight of the weapon. "It's heavy…"

Mordred remarked, "Good weapons tend to be. That's how you know they'll work."

"R – Right…" she answered weakly before picking the sword up.

"Take a few swings," Diablo urged.

"O – Okay…" she responded timidly before flailing the weapon around, nearly getting knocked over by the momentum.

Sighing, Diablo shrugged in acceptance. "Good. Now, to find a quest."

* * *

After buying the sword and leaving the shop, as they made their way to the Guild, before Diablo took note of Raphtalia getting hit by a coughing fit, frowning in worry.

Nanana reminded, '_Didn't Medios say she was sick?_'

Diablo stopped in his tracks and winced. '_… I forgot to get her treated…_'

Furrowing her brow, Nanana offered, '_Do you think an Elixir would help?_'

'_I don't know…_' he muttered in consideration before Nanana suddenly spoke up.

'_Oh! What about Cure Disease?!_'

Diablo nodded subtly. '_Of course!_' "Raphtalia," he called out.

"Y –" she answered, interrupted by another cough, "es?"

"Come here a moment."

Frowning slightly, she walked up to him as he pulled out a small glass of purple juice, mixed a red potion with it, and then handed it to her. "Here."

She merely looked at him, perplexed, as she took the glass.

"Drink this."

Concerned and suspicious, she looked at the drink several times before taking a few sips and coughing. "It's kind of bitter…"

"I know, but you still need to drink it," he urged. '_Kinda hoped the grape juice would have sweetened it…_'

As the young girl looked at the concoction unsurely, Nanana knelt down to her. "It's not unbearable, is it?"

Raphtalia shook her head slowly. "No, it's sweet but a little bitter…"

"It'll help you, so drink it."

"Okay…"

Glancing up at Diablo, Nanana explained privately, '_She's a Demi, remember, she probably has a stronger sense of taste than most._'

'_Ah,_' he answered curtly as Raphtalia gulped down the mixture. "Feeling better?"

Gagging a little, Raphtalia shook her head before looking down at her body in surprise. "Y – Yeah…"

"Good." He patted her head gently.

"What was that?" Rem questioned.

"Grape juice mixed with Potion of Cure Disease."

She flattened her ears in disbelief. "You just have those lying around…?" Sighing to herself, she just smiled. "Forget it, I shouldn't be surprised."

"Why?"

"You always seem to find a way to make the impossible a reality."

"Well he _is_ a Demon Lord," Shera rebuffed with an odd air of pride.

Diablo, however, was still confused at their point. "I don't understand what you're getting at. The ingredients for it are very common."

Moluka explained, "Not everyone can afford enough potions of various kinds to have them to hand that easily, and a very select few people are capable of brewing the ingredients."

"… Oh."

Sighing, she just shrugged. "I guess as a deity you wouldn't grasp that."

"But he's so nice," Shera argued.

Diablo began to argue before Nanana interjected with a smirk. "Indeed he is."

Twitching an eyebrow, Diablo redirected, "L – Let's just head for the Guild…"

"Right," Mordred answered with a nod.

* * *

As they arrived at the Guild hall, Diablo and Nanana were focused on Raphtalia, whose complexion had already improved, smiling softly as she looked around at the mass of people in the building.

'_She's already looking better,_' Nanana remarked with a smile.

Diablo nodded slowly. '_Indeed._'

Looking over the requests on the board, Fikuma pointed to one. "Oh, this one looks okay. Take down some Kobolds pestering a ranch."

Diablo just folded his arms in response. "Hm…"

Getting the unspoken point in his voice, she went for a different one. "… Right. How about this one? Slime elimination in the forest?"

He just stared at her silently.

Gulping, she pointed to another. "… Right. How about this? A town to the west is facing an unnatural snowfall linked to little snowball monsters."

"Snow Sprites!?" Aqua asked with excitement.

Nanana, however, had picked up on a different detail. "A Town in the west?" '_Wait, wasn't that forest we got that bogus Mage Guild Quest took us to in the west?_'

Diablo felt a sudden rush of guilty dismay. '_… Crap. I forgot to unthaw the forest… I kind of thought it would on its own…_'

She just stared at him with a flat expression.

Clearing his throat, he ordered, "We'll take that one."

"Right," Fikuma answered swiftly as she pulled the page off the wall and took it over to one of the desks.

* * *

Soon, the group arrived in the large forest, finding it to be completely encased in ice, with no signs of melting.

Raphtalia joyously ran around the area, picking up and throwing globs of snow, errantly tripping on a patch of ice, but it did little to stop her stride.

Diablo and Nanana just watched her silently before Moluka commented, "What happened here? I've never seen such a large area frozen over so completely."

"A show of force," he answered bluntly, the entire group looking at him knowingly.

Sighing, Moluka asked, "… You did this, didn't you?"

"I did," he answered without any hint of hiding it.

"Snow Sprite!" Aqua cheered as she picked up a large net she had brought and threw it on the ground. Inside was a small creature resembling a snowball, but that floated around with two, small, beady black eyes.

"Oy!" Diablo called out, rather annoyed.

"Huh?" she muttered, having already grabbed a handful of them, Raphtalia staring at them with amusement.

"What are you doing?"

"Catching Snow Sprites, duh," she replied flippantly as she stuff some of them into a jar.

"Why…?" He did not like where the conversation was heading.

"We can use them as refrigeration for food, plus they produce ice, meaning we can make snow cones! And they're just so cute…!"

Nanana and Diablo both stared at the image of Aqua hugging one of the oddly lovable creatures and tried to ignore it. "Whatever…" Raising a hand, Diablo focused his energy towards the ice and called out, "Getting rid of this ice shouldn't be a problem. Dispel."

Several long, pregnant seconds passed in silence. Aside from Raphtalia and Aqua playing with the Snow Sprites, that is.

It was Prelsina who spoke up first. "N – Nothing happened."

Furrowing his brow, Diablo tried again. "… Dispel." And again, no result. "Dispel. Dispel. Dispel! _Dispel_!" All to no avail.

'_What's going on…?_' Nanana asked, becoming worried.

Diablo grit his teeth in annoyance as he looked around the area. '_I don't know. Something is interfering with my –_' He stopped as a familiar sensation ran down the back of his neck. "Get down!" he hollered at the top of his lungs, the girls responding almost immediately and flopping to the cold ground.

Aqua, however, just looked at him confused as she crouched down. "Eh?"

"Barrier!" he shouted, before a large, hexagonal field of light appeared in front of the group. Almost as immediately, a crescent wave of white-blue energy came soaring from nearby, chopping down most of the trees and impacting Diablo's barrier with enough force to leave a large crack.

Aqua, having managed to duck down just in time to not lose her head, exclaimed, "What the hell was that!?"

"No idea!" Fikuma shouted, flicking her gauntlets over her hands.

Megumin, however, stared at the direction the attack came from and shivered where she stood. "I – It's actually real…"

"What is?" Narmaya questioned, before she and the others looked ahead to see what could only be described as a towering samurai, whose entire armor and body was crafted from snow and ice.

"What the…" Diablo muttered, looking at the creature in suspicion.

"… The Winter Shogun…" Megumin answered weakly.

"The who?" Nanana asked before she noticed the Shogun's glowing red eyes lock onto Aqua, or more accurately, the jar of Snow Sprites she held. "Useless! Drop the Snow Sprites!"

Aqua, not even thinking to consider who she meant, retorted, "Why should I?!"

The Shogun raised a katana made of impossibly sharp ice and charged at the chain water goddess, who stood up in fear and grabbed Raphtalia in one hand and the jar of Snow Sprites in the other.

"You idiot!" Nanana snarled.

"Firebolt!" Diablo called out before a blast of fire shot from his palm like a lightning bolt, only to impact the Winter Shogun with barely any hint of damage. "The hell…?"

Narmaya then took her place in front of the entire group, with her hand on her sword.

"Hey!" Diablo shouted as he reached a hand towards her.

"Allow me to handle this," she urged calmly as she lowered her body slightly, gripped her sword tightly, and unsheathed it with a slash that happened faster than even Diablo could perceive.

The Shogun kept running, its sword raised high, before its top half suddenly split and collapsed onto the ground, its legs continuing to run for a few meters before collapsing as well.

Mordred felt her blood run cold at the sigh. "… I barely saw her move…"

The bisected beast attempted to maneuver with its arms to retrieve its lower body, only for Narmaya to impale its chest with her blade, shattering the glowing purple gem inside, causing both halves of its body to crumble into dust. "There. It's defeated," she said calmly as she sheathed her blade.

Mordred's eyes trembled as she stared at the Draph. "… W – Wow…"

Raphtalia stared up at the woman in awe.

Diablo stared in disbelief. '_… I want her so bad…_'

'_Could you _not_ say that in a way that sounds like a dirty old man?_' Nanana chided.

'_I am not that old!_'

Narmaya smiled to herself and turned back to the group. "This is quite the entertaining Familia. I think I will like it here."

Raphtalia threw her arms up with joy. "Yay!"

Narmaya laughed softly and patted her head gently.

Nanana smiled at the scene before glancing at Diablo in thought. '_So what now? Wasn't this quest supposed to be for Raphtalia to learn to fight?_'

'_We'll tackle that in a moment._' "Dispel," he called out, the snow and ice around them beginning to slowly melt and vanish.

"Aww…" Raphtalia pouted as the snow vanished and the forest returned to normal.

Nanana smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. "We can't leave it that way, it wasn't natural and it was causing problems." Patting her head gently, she added, "We'll find you some real snow instead someday, okay?"

"Okay…" she responded sadly, before everyone's attention was drawn to Aqua, frantically collecting as many Snow Sprites as she could before the hit the ground and melted.

"D – Don't worry! I'll save you all!"

Diablo and Nanana stared in a mixture of disbelief and pity, only to be distracted when Raphtalia noticed something to the side and pointed at it. "Big cat."

Turning, everyone saw a single, large, almost horse-sized, black cat with the body shape of a tiger, but with wild, jet black fur and glowing yellow eyes.

Prelsina immediately ducked behind Fikuma.

Looking at it in consideration, Nanana thought, '_Hey, isn't that a…?_'

Diablo nodded slowly. '_I think so…_'

"What is that thing…?" Megumin asked with a mixture of disgust and curiosity.

Diablo explained, "A Rookie Killer. Usually they're hording around Goblins, using them as bait for weaker Adventurers, and also guarding the Goblins from attacks. In return for protection, Goblins bring them any meat they can hunt."

Tilting her head curiously, Darkness wondered, "Why's this one on its own?"

"It probably got trapped in the ice and abandoned. Now it is here with only four rookies in sight."

The large feline growled angrily as it eyed the group, backing up slowly.

Diablo motioned his head to the side, the Rookie Killer seeming to take the hint and ran off.

Fikuma, and Prelsina behind her, both heaved sighs of relief.

After a few moments for everyone to calm down, Fikuma noted, "We still need to find something for Raphtalia to fight, don't we?"

Diablo nodded in approval to the remark, Raphtalia's shoulders dropping slightly in worry.

"Someone help me save them!" Aqua shouted as she continued scooping up as many Snow Sprites as she could.

Frowning as he watched Aqua desperately try to save them, he motioned to Raphtalia and urged, "… Raphtalia, go help her."

The raccoon-eared girl nodded emphatically and ran over to Aqua.

'_Why'd you do that?_' Nanana asked, looking up at Diablo from the side.

Shrugging, he answered, '_It's difficult to explain. After that… session with Shera, if I can concentrate, I can sort of visualize everyone's Stats by looking at them. But it's rough. So I want to see if this kind of thing will do anything for her Stats._'

'_Oh? Do tell._'

'_If I focus my attention on someone and try to… spit out some mana, I guess, I can sort of… visualize in my head what their Stats are, but I can't be certain how accurate it is just yet._'

'_Do Aqua,_' she answered snappily.

'_Why?_' he asked, suspicious.

'_So I know just how pathetic she is._'

Sighing, Diablo focused his attention on Aqua and released some mana from his eyes, though turned to Nanana and remarked, '_Just so you know, I can't give you exact numbers, just the range._'

'_Yeah, yeah, just tell me._'

Sighing again, he focused on Aqua for a few seconds before the information seemed to just enter his mind. '_Agility H, Charisma G, Endurance I, Luck D, Intelligence I, Perception I, Strength H._'

Before she could make any comment on the actual data, Nanana picked up on something else. '_Huh? Those are a different set of Stats than the Falna._'

Shrugging, Diablo retorted, '_Probably because that's the set from Yggdrasil, the set I'm familiar with._'

'_Right… Wait, her Luck is D now?_'

'_Yeah. It was her highest Stat to begin with._'

Aqua sighed heavily in relief as she looked at the vast number of jars filled with Snow Sprites. "Looks like we saved most of them."

"Yeah…" Raphtalia responded with a tired huff.

Folding her arms, Nanana questioned, "Do you really need that many for refrigeration?"

Aqua looked at her, almost insulted. "I'm not just going to let them all die!"

Diablo and Nanana stared at her in a state of matched shock.

She looked down at the many jars filled with cold white puffballs. "Now let's get you all home…"

Moluka just sighed at the events transpiring around her.

* * *

As they reached Faltra, Raphtalia just smiled pleasantly at the jar of Sprites in her grasp.

'_In the end Raph didn't do any fighting…_' Nanana lamented.

'_Indeed…_' Diablo returned.

'_So what do we do…?_'

'_… I have no clue…_'

Folding her arms in thought for several seconds, Nanana suggested, '_In lieu of anything else, what if we have everyone train? You know, practice magic, or using swords, or just regular fighting. Studying tactics, doing strength training, you know, that kind of stuff?_'

'_Hm… that could work. First I need to give Narmaya a Falna. And before that, we need to turn this Quest in to the Guild. After that, I deal with Idol Rapier._'

* * *

After finishing the Guild, Diablo stood behind Narmaya as she opened her dress to reveal her back. '_Okay… why is this so nerve-wracking…?_'

Nanana, through private communication, suggested, '_Because you're both the same species and she's clearly an adult in every way?_'

Diablo stood silently for a moment as her suggestion rolled around in his head. '_… Maybe…_'

"Is something the matter?" Narmaya asked, her back still facing to Diablo.

"N – No," he answered hurriedly, unable to avoid stuttering. "Just hold still."

Narmaya merely nodded silently with a smile.

Gulping, Diablo pricked the end of his finger, the usual stream of blood coming out, before placing his hand on her back as he began inscribing. '_So soft…_' he mumbled in his head at her soft, unblemished skin.

'_Ahem,_' Nanana grumbled, trying to keep Diablo's attention on task.

'_I'm sure you're soft too._'

Nanana's entire face lit up in surprise at that answer. '_Wh – What!? Where did that come from!?_'

'_Then what did you mean?_'

'_N – Nothing…_' she stuttered weakly, turning away with red cheeks.

Diablo raised an eyebrow at her answer but focused on putting his Falna onto Narmaya's back. "Finished."

Narmaya nodded and began to sit up, not seeming to even attempt to put her top back on for a moment.

Diablo winced slightly, turning his head, Megumin pointing at Narmaya and exclaiming, "The look even bigger now!"

Narmaya looked at her in confusion. "Ara?"

"How is that even possible!?"

"Yeah!"

Diablo just sighed as he tried to ignore Narmaya's bare chest.

* * *

Wiz moved around the shop when she noticed Diablo sitting at a desk looking over a wide pile of papers. "Is something wrong?"

He mumbled to himself before looking at her, not initially noticing her. "Oh, no. I'm trying to decide how to proceed with these problems."

Nodding in understanding, Wiz looked over the pages before offering, "Should I request anyone from Nazarick to help you?"

Thinking for a moment, Diablo shook his head. "No. I'd rather wait until I've had a chance to visit the Tomb properly and assessed the situation there."

"Understood," she answered with a bow.

As the room fell silent for a few moments, Wiz finally decided to voice a question on her mind.

"Erm, may I ask you something?"

"Of course," he answered, keeping his attention on the scattered papers.

"How did you know it was me?"

"Magic doesn't work on me, remember? That includes perception altering magic." Glancing at her, he added, "Besides, I could never forget you."

The girl's pale skin almost immediately lit up red. "R – Right…" After a few seconds she noticed him staring at her. "Y – Yes…?"

"Do you think you could teach others how to use magic?"

Tilting her head in thought, Wiz nodded. "Of course. My father was a master wizard, and I've had more than several lifetimes to study magic myself. Why do you ask?"

"Then I'd like you to tutor the mages of my Familia in the use of magic. I'll see if Narmaya can teach the new swordswomen."

Realizing his intentions, she nodded with a small smile. "Certainly."

Looking around just as Nanana walked in, Diablo spoke to her. "You can teach Rem and Fikuma martial arts, right?"

Nanana thought for a moment and shrugged. "Shouldn't be a problem." Giving a thumbs up with a grin, she added, "I had a long time to watch training videos on the internet."

Diablo twitched an eyebrow before sighing. "Regardless, you will be training the fist fighters while I am away."

Wiz tilted her head in confusion. "Away? Do you plan and dealing with Idol on your own?"

He nodded in response. "Yes."

Wiz and Nanana both frowned in concern. "Are you sure that's safe?" the purple-haired girl questioned.

Diablo leaned back in his seat. "I have no intention of dragging the others into it. I had potentially hoped to bring Raphtalia so she could personally execute him, but her growth hasn't been quick enough, and I fear if I hold this off any longer her friends might be dead."

"That makes sense…" Wiz replied weakly.

Scratching his head in thought, Diablo remarked, "After dealing with Idol, I plan to deliver him to Neuronist."

"Good," Nanana chirped.

"At that point I'll likely stop by personally. After that I need to teach the elves a lesson and make sure they learn it."

Folding her arms under her bust, Nanana questioned, "Do you still plan to kill the prince?"

"Not yet. I intend to at some point, but if I do it now, the war might spark. So for the time being he gets to live."

"Ah," she muttered.

"Next time I get the chance, however, he won't be so lucky."

Nanana nodded with a smile. "Right. So, what about physical training?"

"What do you mean?"

Shrugging, she explained, "Strength training. I really didn't do that kind of thing for those years since I didn't really have muscles."

Nodding in agreement, Wiz added, "And my focus is only on magic."

Diablo folded his arms in frustrated thought. '_… Oh! I might have an idea. I remember a manga I read once where the protagonist used some rather simple exercises to get strong._'

Nanana stared at him flatly. '_Please tell me it's not OPM…_'

He remained stubbornly silent.

* * *

Raphtalia giggled to herself as she sat bouncing a Snow Sprite around in her hands.

Megumin watched in disbelief as Aqua prepared an unused room in the shop as a temperature-controlled home for the remaining Sprites. "… Do you just plan on keeping them as pets or something?"

"Eh?" Aqua asked, looking up at them in thought.

Darkness nodded in agreement. "That is a question I have as well. What do you plan on doing with them?"

Flinching, she stuttered as she flubbed an answer. "W – Well they are incredibly useful for refrigeration."

Moluka just gave her a deadpan look. "… You plan on just keeping them as pets, don't you?"

"N – No…!" she argued weakly.

In the midst of all that, Diablo walked into the main room of the shop and the saw the girls bickering but decided to worry about it later. He then turned his attention to Narmaya. "Narmaya, I'd like to speak with you."

"Ara?" she hummed as she turned to him with her usual calm smile.

Diablo stiffened slightly but just turned on his heel and beckoned her to follow him to the back room, which she did.

"What do you need of me Lord Diablo?" she asked as she stood opposite him.

Managing to steady himself somewhat, he explained, "I'd like to know how you feel about tutoring the members of my Familia that use swords."

Putting a finger on her chin, she thought it over for a few moments before smiling. "Hmm… it would prove an interesting experience I suppose."

"Would you do it, is my question?"

She nodded firmly. "Yes. New forms make one grow, and the stronger the others become, the more they will push me to be even better."

Diablo nodded with a small smile. "In that we are in agreement. Then I leave it to you to handle their training in the sword." '_She's definitely the right one for Captain._'

She bowed formally. "Of course, Lord Diablo."

Before he could say more, Nanana interjected on the conversation. '_I don't think it's wise to give her that position yet, she did just join after all. The others might be a little upset._'

'_Yet she is the most mature, level-headed, and strongest member of the Familia._'

'_I'm not saying don't do it. Trust me, I think she's the best pick out of these jokers. I just think you should wait a little first. Maybe give her impromptu command while you're gone or something._'

'_What did you think the sword training was for?_'

'_Right…_'

Satisfied, he turned his attention to the pink-haired Draph. "That is all, Narmaya."

"Understood, Lord Diablo," she answered with a graceful bow.

* * *

"You're leaving?!" Prelsina and Raphtalia both exclaimed in shock.

Diablo nodded plainly. "Yes, I am. I have some business I need to see to outside of Faltra."

Frowning suspiciously, Alicia questioned, "What about the issue with Miss Shera? Are you going to leave her here?"

"The Wards I have set up and the Archangel Flames patrolling will ensure her safety. Not to mention Wiz, Narmaya, and Nanana along with yourself."

"Right…"

Turning to the door, he announced, "With that said, I need to head out."

* * *

**And there you have it! Chapter eleven! Hopefully everyone enjoyed it, do be sure to leave me a review if you did. If you were unsure, confused, or simply had questions on anything, leave your queries as a review and I will do what I can to address them in a reviewer response. If you did not enjoy the chapter, post your grievances if you must, but I would suggest something you actually enjoy instead. That said, for the time being, it will be yet another chapter of Demon Lord's Adventurers next time, so bye-bye!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter XII**

**Greetings everyone! I am back with more Demon Lord's Adventurers, that I only recently realized could have had the snappier title Diablo's Lovely Adventurers and still feature the same acronym. But such is life. That said, hopefully everyone enjoyed the previous chapter, it seems at least a fair few of you did, which is always nice. I hope you enjoy this one as well, so be sure to leave a review letting me know if you did. As usual, Bakuto is along for the ride. And rest easy, I will probably be doing DLA for the next while. Though as a warning, in case you have not read some of the other stuff I posted recently, I have returned to my day job, so my speed at doing any writing will be much slower than before. Anyway, enough rambling, on to the reviewer responses!**

**Guest: Welcome to my stories. You must be new here.**

**correnhimself316: Oh yes you do.**

**superpierce: Because the game didn't actually use just letters, it used numbers tied to those letters. But Diablo is still getting a hang on the skill, thus he can't get the exact data. I believe he even said as much.**

**Fortitude501: It's quite the punishment for the Explosion freak.**

**DreamWeaverGod: And if you can't find them, just leave a review naming the characters you don't recognize and I would be more than happy to tell you where they're from.**

**No, I wear the label madlad with pride.**

**I wanted to have him be harsh but fair in that regard. One of my biggest issues with a _lot_ of anime protagonists, I can name more than a few off the top of my head, is that they're too soft.**

**Honestly, that just seems like the point of a good crossover to me. Why mix the series together if you're going to keep the lore and story of that series completely unchanged.**

**Sadly, as I've said a few times over the past week or so, it has come to an end due to me returning to my day job.**

**ObsidianUnknown66: I had hints of it earlier that no one seemed to pick up on. It's going to cause an interesting result, there's no doubt about that. Indeed it will. I can promise things won't go how they did in Isekai Maou canon.**

**Bachi the cat: Because my time to write is, especially now, finite. I'd rather just answer individual cases of certain characters instead of listing every single one. Moluka is the Wizard from Goblin Slayer. Fikuma is Fighter Girl from Goblin Slayer. Her full name is Nanana Ryuugajou from Nanana's Buried Treasure. She isn't an OC.**

**15songoku: Be my guest.**

**Yes, Raphtalia is here! I plan for her to stay a child for a bit, don't worry.**

**She most certainly is.**

**We will. I have not and do not have any plans to do so. Sadly, I have no intentions of adding it to anything.**

**I have read quite a bit of it, yes.**

**Indeed, it's unnerving how she knows so much.**

**She definitely had to hold it in. It's very possible she played twintwang that night.**

**Yes. Yes he did. I figured adding them in would be nice little additions.**

**Narmaya definitely fits the title of Best Girl, that's for damn sure. And yeah, I thought it was adorable myself.**

**Sorry, no can do on them.**

**Neuronist is going to get more toys to play with than it knows what to do with soon. Don't worry, Orangewood will be showing up.**

**Grand Order, Apocrypha, Nanatsu, and Maoyu don't factor into the actual plot all that much, to be honest. The only reason to watch them, besides them being good series, is to get a grasp on the characters from them I'll be using.**

**Hm... I don't recall anything being missing, at least that I've mentioned thus far. There are other series not in your list, but that's mainly because I haven't brought them up yet.**

**Skull Flame: You can bet on it.**

**Can? It will. This is Aqua we're talking about.**

**Indeed she is.**

**Onishin Tsukitenshi: I figured that's who you meant, since Shizu was kinda deaded at that point.**

**Yes. Kind of. You'll see what I mean soon enough. **

**I wouldn't hold my breath on that one.**

**Lawoi: Well the frustration will climax soon enough.**

**I have considered it and even done it a few times in the past, but it just never goes well since it's a series I know nothing about.**

**METALHELLSPWN: Yeah, anyone wanting to go after Shera has quite the menagerie of pain to get through. That's actually quite a good description of her, honestly.**

**Zabaniya: Patience, grasshopper. DanMachi get mentioned in many ways as the story goes on, including mentions of Orario itself. No, it is a DanMachi crossover, you're just impatient.**

**Phew! That was a lot. I love it, keep it coming! Enough babbling, on to the main event!**

* * *

Diablo sighed to himself as he walked down a simple stone path alone. "This is the first time I've actually gone out and done anything on my own since coming here. It's rather liberating." Pulling a rolled up map out of his Inventory, he looked it over in thought. "So… which path should I take to get to Rabier…? Hm… I think maybe going through Carne might not be a bad idea. I'll check in on the people there on my way through. Sounds like a plan."

* * *

As he made his way towards the edge of the village, he could see from there that it was bustling with activity, people running around doing their various tasks or simply enjoying the day. "Looks like they are doing well."

"Ah, Lord Ainz!"

Turning, Diablo saw Enri carrying a basket of herbs and various plants, with a woman next to him he had not seen before.

A young, blonde elf with almost snow-white skin, vibrant blue eyes, and hair that was a bright gold than Shera's. Another aspect she shared with the naïve elf, was her cleavage that stretched her white blouse to its limits, held together by a brown corset at her waist, just above a vibrant green skirt, finished off by simple brown shoes.

'_… Another boob elf…_' he said to himself as the girl turned to him curiously, her chest shifting in her top.

Looking at Enri, the confused elf questioned, "Ainz? You mean the man who saved the village?"

"Yep!" Enri chirped with a smile and a nod.

"Wow…"

"And you are?" Diablo asked.

Flinching, the girl bowed deeply. "O – Oh, my apologies. I'm Lyrule."

He nodded in recognition. "I see. Good to see you weren't affected by the Theocracy's attack."

Putting a hand on Lyrule's shoulder, Enri explained, "She and some of the others were out gathering berries and apples at the time."

"Ah."

"So why are you here, Lord Ainz?"

"I'm merely passing through."

"Oh…" she answered, disappointed.

That reaction caught him by surprise. "Why? Is there something you need?"

"W – Well, no…" she stuttered, seeming to try and find a reason.

"I see."

"Though… are you busy?"

He just shrugged simply. "Depends on what you have in mind."

"U – Um…" she stuttered once more, looking around for an answer when someone called out to the two.

"Hey, what's taking so long with those herbs?" asked a mildly annoyed voice that approached the group.

Turning, Diablo saw an older Chienthrope woman with deep brown hair, tall pointed ears, and a long fluffy tail, wearing a rather plain, pale green, vertically striped sweater that hugged her figure tightly, her voluptuous chest threatening to overtake her corset, the dark sage shawl over her shoulders doing little to obscure it, along with tightly rapped sleeves, wound with rope, and a green skirt that reached all the way to her ankles, leaving very little of her skin exposed, but her figure still eminently pronounced.

He gulped slightly. '_… Woof…_'

The woman herself then saw Diablo and blinked in thought a few times. "Woof…" After taking a moment, she nodded in realization. "Oh, you must be the god that helped the village."

Enri and Lyrule gasped before turning to Diablo. "G – God!?"

Diablo frowned incredulously. "… How…?"

The Chienthrope woman blinked in confusion, looking between the three. "Hm? What? Did I say something bad?"

"He's a god!?" Enri asked in shock.

Diablo nodded with a sigh. "Yes, I am. I had hoped to hide that fact."

The woman's ears fell back with a weak laugh. "Oops, sorry…"

"How'd you know Ms. Wolf?" he asked.

"Winona," she corrected, giving her name. "You look like a Draph but you don't smell like anything I've encountered before. Plus your face…"

Diablo tilted his head slightly in confusion. "My face?"

"All gods and goddesses, despite whether they appear young or old, have perfect, flawless faces."

Diablo furrowed his brow incredulously. '_… I knew I designed this character to be handsome but I didn't know I went that far… maybe I should have added some scars or something…_' "Anyway…" he trailed off, trying to redirect.

Winona then turned to Lyrule and Enri, motioning back to the village. "Alright you two, run on home."

The two nodded and bowed to Diablo before running back.

Watching the two leave, Winona's expression soured before she approached Diablo and spoke quietly. "So, is it true?"

He was only confused by her question. "Pardon?"

"I've heard rumors Faltra might be going to war."

"I am doing my best to prevent that," he replied frankly.

Winona sighed and put a hand on her cheek in exasperation. "I swear the governor loves wars…"

"The prince of Greenwood is the one trying to start it," he answered gruffly.

Winona furrowed her brow in bewilderment. "The elves? Good grief…"

"Yes. That shitty prince is trying to take one of my Familia members and use her as his personal breeding whore."

She growled deeply. "He's a disgrace to elves if that's true."

"I assure you it is, unfortunately."

Nodding apprehensively, she added, "I'd advise you to watch out for the governor too."

"Oh?" he asked with uneasy curiosity.

"He loves to earn new commendations in warfare, so it's possible he'll get in the way of a peaceful resolution."

He just huffed dismissively. "If he does, it will be the final act he does."

She nodded with a smile. "Well let's hope it doesn't come to that. The one good spot of the governor is he doesn't discriminate between humans and bumans."

"Bumans?"

"Many of the humans refer to us as Demihumans, but we prefer the term we've picked for ourselves, bumans."

"Understood."

"So you truly don't have time to stay?"

"I'm afraid not. I may stop by on my way home, however. I have to… deal with a noble that has gained my ire."

Her tail swished slowly in curiosity. "My, my. Must be quite the fool to earn the ire of a god."

"Yes. A man named Idol Rapier," he answered with a nod.

Winona's entire countenance stiffened at that.

He sighed in recognition. "I am guessing you're familiar with this particular brand of filth."

"Unfortunately… he's well known among the buman inhabitants of Re-Estize…" Winona hissed.

"Given the accounts concerning my newly adopted daughter I believe that is putting it mildly."

"Yeah…"

"My apologies for shadowing your day. I'll come by another day."

"It's okay, Lord Diablo," she answered with a smile as he walked by before looking to the side. "What about your companion?" As she turned around, she noticed he did not hear her, disappointing her slightly.

Diablo looked around at the various structures as he entered the village, most of the houses fully repaired from the attack by the Theocracy. "Looks like it is doing much better now." As he did, he noticed a girl, another Chienthrope, playing with several younger children.

A somewhat petite young woman with light brown hair, her ears and tail tipped with white fur, bright red eyes, wearing a plain pink blouse and dark blue trousers.

'_… Another wolf girl…_'

Winona tapped his shoulder with a smirk. "You take a liking to Holo?"

"Holo?"

"My daughter."

He blinked in thought, looking between Winona and Holo before making the connection. "… You're a mother?"

She raised an eyebrow at his response. "I am. Why?"

"… No reason. Though given the way you look and act I should have already assumed you were one."

"Oh?" she responded before deciding to drop it. "Just so you know, Holo is still looking for a mate."

"Mother!" Holo screamed as she ran over to the two with a red face. "Stop that!"

"Why? You are."

"That doesn't mean you have to announce it!" she exclaimed, her face turning even redder.

"Then how will a fine male know?"

Holo threw her arms up and demanded, "Mother! Stop talking!"

Diablo stepped away from the two with a small smile before walking away, leaving the village.

As he did, Winona frowned slightly.

* * *

Diablo heaved a sigh with a growl as he left the village. "The fact that people in villages like that know of his actions proves I need to get him to Neuronist. I suppose that one will get quite a few toys soon. Best get to this filth now then."

* * *

Darkness looked around the shop curiously. "Hm…" Exiting the shop, she looked around various containers and side streets. "Huh…"

"Miss Darkness?" Wiz asked as the blonde reentered the store, still scanning the area in frustration.

"Has anyone seen Alicia? I was hoping to speak with her but I can't find her."

Nanana furrowed her brow suspiciously. "Now that you mention it, I haven't seen her since Momo left."

Aqua, chewing on some fried potatoes, spoke up, "She told me she was heading to do some shopping."

Nanana twitched an eyebrow as she looked at the goddess. "… And how long ago was that?"

Aqua just shrugged. "I dunno. Just before Diablo left."

Grumbling, Nanana pushed, "… And how many _hours_ was that?"

"Uuhh…" she droned, not having an answer.

"Diablo left six hours ago," Rem interjected.

"Thank you," Nanana offered.

"Really?" Aqua asked in surprise. "It's been that long? I hadn't noticed…"

"It would appear we have a problem then," Narmaya noted.

Nanana nodded in agreement. "Glad to see I am not the only smart one here."

"What can we do about it though?" Wiz asked.

"Do what?" Aqua questioned, completely lost.

"Do we really need to spell it out?" Nanana chided.

Narmaya sighed in defeat. "I'm not entirely certain there's much we can do. They've had too much of a lead. Even I couldn't catch up to him quickly enough at this point."

"Great…"

"I suppose all we can do is have faith in Diablo," Wiz added.

"Would someone tell me!?" Aqua begged.

* * *

Diablo looked around the forest as he walked. '_It would certainly be helpful to have the game's radar to know when any enemies are close, or something like it. Hm… Wait, I was able to sense the detail of how Shera's mana network is by pulsing my own mana… I wonder, if I do the same in all directions, can I detect the mana of other people around me? Worth a shot at least._'

Stopping where he stood, he closed his eyes and focused on his mana, feeling it, storing it, and then sending out in all directions. In response, his mind was filled with a blanket of white, seeing only indiscernible color in all directions.

'_… Okay, maybe that was too much mana in the pulse. Let's try a little less density this time…_' Concentrating and trying to send out a burst of mana slightly weaker than before, he got the result he wanted.

His mind's eye could see everything, every little insect buzzing around or crawling under the earth or squirming along a tree. Every bird and reptile moving about the world, whether above or below. In the distance, he could feel the presence of a few of the villagers just outside the edge of the city.

'_… Amazing… I can see everything… But… it's still too much. Being able to detect the termites in the wall won't help look for enemies. Time to scale it back just a bit more._' And again he released a slightly weaker pulse of mana. '_Okay… I can't sense the individual bugs and plants this time… which is good. How about the villagers…? … One Chienthrope, two humans…_'

His detection also alerted him to another presence he had not seen with the minutia clogging his vision. Turning to the side, he called out to someone hiding in the brush. "You can come out now."

At first there was no movement, though after a moment the bushes moved aside and Alicia stepped out from the foliage.

He glowered suspiciously as she approached him. "… Why are you here…?"

She remained silent for a moment, as if thinking, before answering simply. "Following you."

"You should be back in the city protecting Shera," he argued.

"That isn't my job," she retorted bluntly.

He frowned suspiciously as he listened. "… What?"

"My actual task given by the crown is to observe you."

Diablo narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "For what purpose?"

"Officially, to see if you are a threat to the nation or not."

He folded his arms as she spoke. "… And, unofficially?"

"I have my own reasons."

"… So that back at the governor's place was all an act?"

"Not necessarily." With a small smile, she added, "I still am who I am."

He stared at her silently for a few moments before sighing. "You've followed me this far already, I suppose you can come the rest of the way. But don't interfere."

Alicia just gave an overly sweet smile. "I have no intention of it."

"Good," he answered, slightly concerned.

* * *

With Alicia in tow, Diablo continued his path towards Rabier's estate, surprised to find Alicia helpful in finding his way there.

The two soon arrived at a large, fortress-like estate with a large wall surrounding the compound made up of several large buildings, a multi-story mansion sitting at its center.

"This the place?" he asked.

"Yes, this is Sir Idol Rabier's estate," Alicia explained.

"Good," he answered before raising his hand.

"Hm?"

"Deep Slumber."

She looked to the estate as a large purple haze floated above and engulfed the entire complex before dissipating. She blinked curiously before following Diablo as he walked through the front gates of the wall, inside finding every guard and attendant to the lord unconscious and asleep on the ground.

Seeing her slightly concerned expression, he added, "Do not worry, they will wake up soon. Their master is my goal, along with those he's enslaved."

"Understood."

Looking around, Diablo closed his eyes and released a pulse of mana. He detected numerous sources of life, before three he sensed underground caught his attention. Two small, very weak souls, and one hefty soul. "There." Looking around, he saw a set of stairs leading into the pavement before reaching a large, padlocked door.

Heading down the stairs with Alicia behind him, he walked up to the door and grabbed one of the handles, ripping both of the doors off the hinges and casting them aside.

Alicia ducked to avoid the pieces of jagged metal and wood before following Diablo again.

As he entered the long, deep hallway, his nose was filled with the scent of rotting flesh and mold. However, as he glanced to the side upon entering, he saw a prison cell, inside of which sat a small, humanoid skeleton with ragged clothes covering it.

His anger at Rabier immediately melted into full rage. His rage found a target when he saw a large, rotund, blonde-haired man lying on the ground in a lavish coat, holding a whip.

Diablo made his way towards Rabier's unconscious form, doing his best not to lose his temper just yet. As he did, however, he saw the interior of the cell Rabier collapsed in front of. Two young bumans, both female, one with short light brown hair, small, round, weasel-like ears, and wearing plain rags.

The other, a girl with short, wild black hair with white accents and pointed ears, both girls having numerous fresh and old wounds and scars on their bodies.

Diablo's patience hit its limit and he slammed his foot onto Rabier's lower leg, shattering the bone and waking the man from his induced slumber.

Rabier sat up and wailed in agony as he awakened and looked around in terror and confusion. "Wh – What the hell?! What's going on…?! Who are you!? Gaahh!" he howled and wailed.

Alicia stared silently, as Diablo snarled, "Silence, vermin!"

"Guards! Guards! Help me!" Rabier begged, receiving no answer.

"Your guards can't hear you. They aren't coming."

Rabier whimpered in fear and did his best to try and crawl away from Diablo before seeing Alicia behind the horned man. "C – Cristella! You're a Royal Knight! Please, help me!" He received his answer in silence as Alicia stared at him with cold, emotionless eyes, as if he were nothing. He paled as he realized he had no escape.

"Don't expect any aid from her either. For you are being dragged to Hell."

Rabier looked at him in genuine bewilderment. "H – Hell!? For what?! I didn't do anything wrong!"

Diablo's expression tightened in disgust. "For torturing children, you filth."

"Children?!" He then looked at the two bumans and put the pieces together. "Wait, do you mean those animals?! They're not even human, why does it matter!?"

Alicia's hand curled tightly as she listened to him, her expression unchanging.

Diablo, however, drove his point home as he shattered Rabier's other leg. "They are sapient beings, filth."

"Hyagh! O – Okay, okay, I'm sorry!" he cried out desperately.

Diablo merely huffed in disgust. "Not as sorry as you will be. For those bound for hell enjoy eternal pain and damnation. Now, to get you ready." Opening his hand, a blood red energy began to flow from his palm and shoot towards Rabier. "Shrink."

"Wh – What!?" the man shrieked before he was enveloped in light and soon found himself less than thirty centimeters tall, at which point Diablo grabbed the now miniaturized man and threw him into a small bag which he dropped into his Inventory.

Alicia watched the events unfold with quiet interest before Diablo tore open the door to the cell and made his way to the two prisoners, opening his palm towards them.

"Soothing Sunlight."

A warm golden aura enveloped the two momentarily before the girl with black hair twitched and opened her eyes. As her brain caught up to her, she paled in horror and began thrashing where she was chained.

"No! Stop, don't hit me!"

Diablo gently put his hand on her head, causing to at first freeze in fear before looking at him in confusion. "… There is no one here who will hit you."

"H – Huh…?" the girl mumbled before looking around in fatigued confusion.

Alicia walked up to the group with a smile. "You're both safe now."

"And the one that hurt you is in hell now," Diablo added. "So, what is your name?"

"M – Mine? K – Keel… I'm Keel."

"And this one?" he questioned, pointing to the girl next to her that was still unconscious.

"She's Rifana." As soon as she said that, something seemed to spark in Keel's memory and she looked at Diablo desperately. "Wait, Rifana! You have to help her, please! She's sick!"

Without waiting for further explanation, Diablo conjured a Potion of Cure Disease mixed with berry juice from his Inventory and opened the weak girl's lips just wide enough to pour the concoction into her mouth. Tilting her head back, he gently massaged her neck to get her to swallow the medicine.

After a few moments of tense silence, Rifana began to cough violently for only a second before her eyes slowly opened. Looking around the room with total exhaustion, she scanned the room for her friend. "… Ke… el…?"

"H – Here, I'm right here Rifana!"

Deciding that any danger had passed, Diablo effortlessly snapped the shackles holding both girls up and gently sat them on the floor. "Now let's get you two someplace safe and warm."

"Warm…" Rifana questioned tiredly. "Will there be… food…?"

"Of course."

Helping her friend stand shakily, Keel urged, "Come on… maybe we'll find Raphtalia…"

"Perhaps you will." Diablo sported a knowing smirk as Keel held his hand, leading the two out of the dingy prison and into the main courtyard of Rabiel's mansion.

As the group made their way out of the cellar, Diablo noticed Alicia looking around at the various unconscious soldiers.

"Something wrong Alicia?"

"Do you plan on leaving these soldiers here?"

He nodded plainly. "Yes. They will be dealt with by their own. After all, what happens to soldiers that so utterly failed to protect the noble they were assigned to protect?"

"Ah…" she responded quietly as she gripped the hilt of her sword tightly before following Diablo out the front gates.

Diablo, with Rifana on his back and his left hand holding Keel's hand, put his right hand on Alicia's shoulder.

The redhead looked at him mildly confused.

"Return."

Seconds later, the four vanished in a flash of light, reappearing in Faltra in a similar flash.

"There."

Keel, looked around in total shock. "What… where… how…?"

Diablo picked up a small smirk on his face before noting, "I'm a god. I can do many things beyond your comprehension."

Keel stared up at him in awe. "For real!?"

"I am. Now, to introduce you to the rest." Taking a moment to consider his options as he walked with the girls, he reached out to Nanana with telepathy. '_Nanana, you awake?_'

* * *

With a yawn and a small grumble, Nanana roused from her sleep and answered him. '_H – Huh… Momo? Are you back in Faltra?_'

'_I am. I'd like you to wake Raphtalia and bring her to foyer, I've got a surprise for her._'

'_Sure. Won't take long at all._'

'_Thanks._'

Turning to her side, she shook Raphtalia gently. "Hey, Raph, Diablo's home."

The girl mumbled and hummed quietly before forcing her eyes open. "Mama…?"

Laughing weakly, she shook her head. "Nanana. Now, Diablo's home and he has a present for you."

Raphtalia sat up with a yawn and nodded before stretching, her tail wiggling a little. "Okay."

* * *

Nodding to himself, Diablo turned to the others. "Alright, let's head home. You able to stand yet, Rifana?"

"I – I think so…" the girl answered uncertainly.

Taking her from his shoulders, he placed her gently on the ground.

She shakily stood up, sticking her arms out to help her balance somewhat.

"There is no need to rush, Rifana."

"I… I can walk…" she returned firmly as she began using her legs gingerly.

Grabbing her hand with his, Diablo walked both Keel and Rifana towards the shop, Alicia watching the events unfold silently.

As they made their way through the dimly lit, motionless streets of the city, they eventually arrived in front of the shop.

"Here we are."

Hearing his voice, Nanana opened the door and saw Diablo, before looking down and seeing the nervous Keel and Rifana holding his hands. "… I see."

Keel stared silently up at Nanana, her eyes wide.

"Yes, li'l one?" she asked pleasantly as she knelt down.

"Pretty…" she answered softly.

Smiling, Nanana patted her head gently. "Why thank you."

"Shall we go inside?"

The two girls both nodded as Nanana stood up, opening the door.

As the group stepped inside, Keel and Rifana both gazed ahead in disbelief, seeing Raphtalia sitting on a sofa playing with a large orange ball.

Noticing she was not paying attention, Nanana called out to her. "Raphtalia! We got some special guests!"

"Huh?" the girl mumbled before looking up. Her entire body froze and her eyes widened, the ball dropping from her grasp as she could not believe what she saw. "… K – Keel…? R – Rifana… Chan…?"

"Raph!" Keel called out before letting go of Diablo's hand and running forward.

"Raph… talia…?" Rifana mouthed aloud in shock.

"Rifana-Chan! Keel!" Raphtalia exclaimed before jumping down from the sofa and running towards the two, all three coming together in a large hug, tears of joy falling from their eyes.

Diablo and Nanana watched the spectacle with matching, silent smiles as the three girls held each other tightly.

His fingers clenching, Diablo assured, '_… That bastard will live in eternal hell for what he did to them._'

'_Good,_' she responded bluntly.

'_On a completely unrelated note, I am heading for Nazarick._'

'_Would you mind some company?_'

Glancing at Alicia, he explained, '_I'm already going to have some._'

Nanana nodded in understanding, looking at the girls. '_Right. I'll look after the little ones then. Maybe give them some pudding. Later you can explain what the hell she's thinking._'

'_Ri –_' he began to say before he was suddenly tackled with a hug.

"Diablo!" Shera exclaimed as she jumped from the balcony down to him, still wearing her pajamas of a loose-fitting green tank top and white shorts that barely existed.

He blinked in thought as he managed to keep himself stable. "Hmm? Shera?"

"You were gone so long!"

"I was not even gone an entire day," he remarked dryly.

"But it felt so long!" she cried.

Sighing, he gently rubbed her head. "Alright, alright."

Rem's eyebrows twitched as she watched the two.

Barely managing to pry her off himself, Diablo set Shera on her feet. "Now, I have another trip to make, and I can't be certain how long it will take. So be good while I am away."

"Okay!" she answered with a salute and a smile.

Raphtalia's ears dropped somberly. "You're leaving again…?"

He nodded before kneeling down and gently putting a hand on her head. "I am. But I shall return, I assure you. Until then, why not play with your friends and show them around?"

She wiped tears from her eyes and nodded with a smile. "Okay!"

Nanana interjected, "But first you need to go back to bed."

"Aw…"

"Do you want me to take your ball?"

"N – No Mama!" she answered frantically before bolting up the stairs, Keel and Rifana following soon after.

Nanana watched them leave, taken aback.

After a few moments of silence, Diablo coughed into his hand. "… A – Anyway… Alicia, I assume you plan to keep following me, even when I head elsewhere?"

She glanced at Nanana as Shera and the others returned to bed.

"She is one of my allies from before I was summoned to this world."

"I see. Then yes," Alicia answered plainly.

"Then I expect you to keep what you see and what you learn in our next destination secret." Narrowing his eyes, he extended a hand out towards her. "If you do not, I _will_ silence you. Understood?"

Her expression remained unchanged, but he did notice a single bead of sweat fall down her cheek. "Understood."

"The place we will be heading is the Great Tomb of the Nazarick, Nanana and my home base. You are to do exactly as I say within its walls, or risk my servants killing you. Understood?"

"Yes."

"Good. I trust you and Narmaya can handle matters here?"

Nanana nodded with a smile. "'Course."

"Good. Let's head out then."

Nanana waved as Diablo and Alicia left the shop once more.

* * *

As they walked, Diablo put a hand on his chin in consideration.

"Yes?" Alicia spoke up, hoping to probe his thoughts.

"Nothing. Just thinking."

"I see. Do you think we should handle the elves before heading to your base?"

He shook his head in denial. "It will not take long. Besides I need to make arrangements there before… Dealing with the Greenwood Ponce."

"I understand. Do you still plan to make a stop by Carne Village?"

"Not until I've dealt with Keera. After that and the foolish governor makes his final error then I will head to Carne. Maybe bring my daughters and Nanana along."

"I see." Blinking momentarily, she tilted her head in slight confusion.

"Alright, this should be far enough from the city. Satan!"

After a moment, Satan appeared from a magic circle in front of the two. "You called, My Lord?"

"It's time. I'd like you to take me to Nazarick's new location."

"At once." She nodded in understanding before turning her attention to Alicia. "And the human?"

"She comes too," he answered, only for her to begin to speak, Diablo cutting her off. "As a guest. She does anything I deem disrespectful or antagonistic to Nazarick and I'll rip out her soul myself."

"As you wish. Is it safe for her to know the way to Nazarick?"

"Yes. If anyone finds it we will know who to blame."

"Very well."

He then turned his attention to the girl with a stern gaze. "I hope you understand Alicia. If anyone finds where Nazarick is, I will know it was you who shared that information. I don't care if the governor or the emperor himself demands to know. You tell them and your life is forfeit."

Alicia trembled slightly, Diablo assumed in fear. "U – Understood."

He smiled with a soft smile. "I am glad you do."

"Let's proceed," Satan urged as the three headed off.

* * *

With the moon still high in the sky, Satan led the two down a dirt road for quite some time. As they walked, Alicia recognized a series of tall, spike-like mountains in the distance. "Hm? Those mountains, the border of Zephyros."

Looking them over, Diablo nodded to himself. "Good to know."

"So Nazarick is on the border?"

"Yes," Satan answered. "Not of that nation however."

Alicia furrowed her brow in confusion. "Then what are we doing here?"

Diablo realized what was going on and decided to stop the situation from getting more off track. "Satan."

The redhead did not answer and merely kept her attention forward.

Narrowing his eyes, he ordered coldly, "Satan. Answer. You're taking us on a circuitous path, are you not?"

Wincing, she stopped suddenly and nodded slowly. "… Well… yes…"

Sighing, he argued, "I appreciate the sentiment of wanting to keep Nazarick's location secret, but we have neither the time nor the need for this. Just take us on the fastest, most direct route. Now."

"… Understood…" she answered, looking back at him unsurely.

"I already told you. Should the information of Nazarick's location get out to anyone via Alicia she will be punished for it. In the strictest way possible."

"… Very well…"

* * *

Nanana yawned as the sun began to peek over the horizon and attempted to sit up to draw the curtains, only to realize Keel, Rifana, and Raphtalia were all three cuddled around her.

Smiling, she shook the girls gently. "Come on girls, time to get up."

Keel just mumbled incoherent nonsense in her sleep while Rifana's tail coiled itself around Nanana's arm.

Sighing, she decided to play dirty. "If you don't get up, we can't eat breakfast."

The three swiftly woke up, managing to drag themselves out of the bed and stand in front of the purple-haired girl.

"Good girls. Now, let's go get ready for breakfast."

"Right…!" they cheered, still half-asleep.

* * *

Downstairs, Nanana saw Wiz reading through a book on the sofa. "Wiz? What are you doing up this early?"

"Huh?" Wiz hummed before turning to her with a smile. "Liches don't need to sleep."

"Oh. Right. Forgot about that. What are you reading?"

"I'm just refreshing my memory on my father's notes about magic."

"Ah. I'm making breakfast, want something?"

"No thank you," she answered somewhat mindlessly as she read the notebook.

"You sure?" she asked, somewhat surprised.

At that moment, Narmaya walked into the room in a nightgown, yawning.

"Morning Narmaya, want any breakfast?"

She nodded sleepily with a smile. "Certainly."

"Right." Smiling weakly to herself, she thought, '_If Momo saw Narmaya like this he'd probably faint…_'

* * *

"Achoo!" Diablo sneezed hard, sending a gust of icy wind ahead of him.

"Lord Diablo?" Satan asked as the three of them walked.

"I'm fine…"

"Can Demon Lords even get sick?" Alicia wondered aloud.

"No idea…"

* * *

"No!" Megumin exclaimed as she ran out of the back carrying her staff desperately, Rem chasing after her.

"I just want to see how it works," the cat-eared girl argued.

Pointing at her with indignation, Megumin retorted, "You want to take it apart!"

"… And? I'd put it back together."

"Even still! I don't want you damaging it!"

Sighing, Nanana interrupted their shouting match. "Come on, don't you think it's a bit too early in the morning for all this? I haven't even made breakfast yet. Besides, Rem, what do you hope to gain by taking apart her staff?"

She winced as her tail stood on end.

"It's because the orb floating in it is shiny, isn't it?"

Her ears folded back as she swiftly gained a great interest in the floor. "… N – No…"

"Which means yes. Where's everyone else?"

Relieved at the change in subject, Rem answered, "The stupid elf is still asleep, and Darkness is out back swinging her sword around. Fikuma and her friends are watching her. Lilietta is upstairs."

"Right. Well go set the table while I get breakfast ready then."

Rem nodded and went for the long table in the kitchen.

As she started getting the tools and ingredients out, Nanana noticed Keel, carrying Rifana on her back, chasing Raptalia around the living room, all three laughing.

"Hurry, hurry!" Rifana cheered. "She's going to get away!"

"No one escapes the tickle monster!" Keel shouted, Raphtalia ducking under the coffee table.

Nanana smiled warmly as she watched the girls play. She was, however, distracted when she heard a large crash against the back of the building. Rushing out the back door, she looked around until she saw Fikuma embedded in the wall. "… Huh? Why are you in the wall?"

Fikuma weakly pointed ahead, where Darkness stood with a sword extended forward.

Nanana blinked in surprise and then nodded to herself. "Huh. She actually landed a pretty good blow. Good to see."

Fikuma weakly grumbled, "Can… someone… get me out of this wall…?"

Nanana proceeded to grab her by the wrist and yanked her straight out of the wall.

"… Ouch… Thanks…" she groaned as she stood up and rubbed her sore neck.

"Come on, I'm making breakfast, so get cleaned up," Nanana urged before heading back inside.

"Right…"

* * *

"Whoa…" Keel gasped as she sat at the table with the steaming hot food laid out in front of them.

"So much food…" Rifana awed with stars in her eyes.

Raphtalia nodded fervently. "Yeah! And they let us eat as much as we want!"

Keel practically drooled at that statement. "Seriously?! I'm gonna eat until I'm the size of a horse!"

Nanana just smiled pleasantly while Narmaya cautioned, "Don't eat too much too fast or you'll get a stomachache."

Keel basically ignored her as she tore into a large roll of sausage.

Nanana shrugged and rebuffed, "I think it's okay to let them overeat just this once."

"Goob mornin…" Shera mumbled incoherently as she walked into the kitchen with a yawn.

"Morning Shera."

"Finally decided to get up, huh?" Rem chided.

Shera pulled out a seat and sat down next to Rem, only to almost immediately drift back off to sleep.

Rem twitched an eyebrow as she pushed the elf off as she leaned to the side.

Nanana, however, knew exactly how to perk her up. "Guess Rem gets Shera's share."

Her ears twitched and sat almost completely straight up as her entire body stiffened. "I – I'm awake!"

"Good to see you are. Alright, let's eat."

* * *

Keel slumped back in her chair with a hefty sigh. "Pah… so full…"

Rifana leaned over the edge of the table with a smile, her tail slowly swishing behind her.

Raphtalia smiled, her tail wagging happily, as she carried some of the dishes over to Nanana at the sink.

"After I get these dishes cleaned, we need to take your friends to get those collars removed; and get them new clothes."

She nodded with excitement. "Right!"

Keel and Rifana, roused by hearing that, however, looked at Nanana with apprehensive suspicion.

Seeing their expressions, she decided to assuage their worries. "Something wrong?"

Keel put a hand on the heavy metal collar around her neck and questioned unsurely, "We're… really going to get these things removed…?"

"Yes, really," she answered with a smile.

The two looked at each other with bright smiles.

* * *

Near the center of town, Nanana walked into the large ten with the girls in tow and saw the redheaded beauty standing near one of the crates. "Yo, Medios."

Looking up, the woman smirked as she saw Nanana. "Hoh? He send you for more?"

Shaking her head, Nanana stepped to the side and motioned to the anxious Rifana and Keel behind her. "No, some more to get their collars removed."

Medios raised an eyebrow in mild surprise before frowning slightly. "… Where does he keep finding so many cute slaves?"

"Medios…" Nanana growled quietly.

She laughed weakly and put up her hands submissively. "Sorry, sorry. It's my job, so I'm always thinking about it."

"Just get these things off them."

"Right, right. This way."

Inside the smaller tent at the center of the market, Medios prepared the tools to overwrite and remove slave collars before turning to Nanana. "So who's first?"

After a few seconds of silence, Keel gulped and stepped forward. "I – I'll go first."

Nodding, Medios pulled up a small chair. "Just sit here and I'll get started. Just so you know, it's going to hurt a little."

"I – I can take it," she grimaced, her small hands trembling.

"Such a brave girl." Pulling the front of Keel's simple shirt down, Medios made a few strokes and motions, causing the ornate seal to appear on her chest. Tracing a few more shapes and patterns, the ink she had placed began to disappear before the seal lit up and sparked violently.

Keel's entire body tensed and locked up as the seal sparked and flashed. However, she did her best to make as little noise and commotion as possible.

Nanana frowned in slight concern at this as the seal faded before the collar vanished in a flicker of light.

Sighing heavily, Keel hopped down from the chair and walked up to the worried Rifana. "See? It's not a big deal at all."

She blinked in realization before smiling as she understood what Keel was trying to do as Rifana made her way to the chair and underwent the same process, letting out a few whimpers and yelps as the seal disconnected itself from her soul.

Taking a breath, Rifana got down from the chair and patted her neck as if not realizing it was real, Keel hopping up and down nearby in excitement. "It's really gone…"

Handing the payment over to Medios, Nanana nodded and addressed the girls. "Yep. Now, let's go and get you some new clothes to wear."

"Right!" Keel answered with a fist pump.

* * *

Soon the four arrived at the clothing shop where the owner, a woman with light tan hair and pale green eyes, wearing a plain pink top with a light brown apron, and simple brown boots, greeted them. "Welcome to the Tailored – ah, Miss Nanana! And you brought the adorable Raphtalia with you too!"

Nanana waved with a smile. "Hey Casla."

She waved with a smile as she looked at Raphtalia before seeing Rifana and Keel, her eyes practically sparkling. "Even more cuties!" she exclaimed with worryingly heavy breathing.

Putting her hands in front of the girls at Casla's rather rabid behavior, Nanana warned, "If you get any closer I'm going to call the authorities or use pepper spray."

Shaking out of her trance somewhat, Casla tilted her head in confusion. "Pepper spray?"

Sighing, Nanana waved away the matter. "Forget it. I need some clothes for these two. I'd like you to find or make stuff that fits. _Without _being creepy."

Casla gave an enthusiastic thumbs up. "Got it!" Picking up a long piece of string with increments marked on it, she explained, "I'll just need their measurements first."

Nanana handed her a piece of paper. "I took them for you already this morning. They might not be as exact as you usually do, but they should be good enough.

Nodding, Casla accepted the paper with a pout. "Okay…"

* * *

Not long after, both Rifana and Keel had new clothing they were trying on in front of a large mirror.

Rifana smiled at the sight of herself in the simple white dress, the red sleeves accenting the color.

Keel, however, was less comfortable in the tan shirt and knee-length blue skirt.

Nanana nodded in approval. "You two look really nice."

"This is… a bit weird… do you have anything else…?" Keel asked awkwardly.

"What's wrong?" Casla questioned, curious.

Raphtalia explained, "Back home, Keel always wore boys' clothes."

Keel's face turned slightly red at the blunt proclamation as she argued, "It's because they're easier to move in than these skirts and stuff."

The tailor nodded in understanding. "I have some pants you can try instead."

"Th – Thanks…"

* * *

Keel smiled as she hopped where she stood, now wearing a plain green top and blue shorts.

"And all together… one hundred seventy-four Vals," Casla declared as she looked over the tags.

Nanana nodded and put several gold and silver coins on the desk, Casla handing her back the difference. "Thanks."

"So where's the man himself?" Casla questioned, looking around.

"Off taking care of some business," Nanana answered rather vaguely.

"Ah. Well be sure to come back when you want clothes for anymore little cuties."

"Sure…" Nanana answered with a sideways glance before turning to the girls. "Alright, let's head back."

"'Kay!" Raphtalia and Keel cheered.

* * *

Keel ran around the back yard kicking the orange ball around, Raphtalia chasing after her to try and catch it. Keel stopped and turned, kicking the ball through the air to Rifana, who managed to catch it and began running with it, Raphtalia turning instantly and giving chase.

Narmaya watched the three play while drinking warm tea with Nanana. After taking a sip, her expression hardened. "How anyone could something so horrible to innocents like them bothers me to my core."

Nodding firmly, Nanana retorted. "Well Momo will be dealing with him thoroughly, I assure you. So relax in knowing that scum is in hell where he belongs."

"Right." Deciding to change to a less somber subject, Narmaya questioned, "So, when shall we start training them?"

Folding her arms, Nanana answered, "Tomorrow I think. They deserve a day just to have fun with each other. After all, children deserve this."

"Very well."

At that moment, the two noticed Wiz walking up to the building carrying a large wooden box. "What's in the box, Wiz?"

"Huh? Oh, a bunch of crystals my mother used to train in magic."

"Neat."

The conversation was abruptly interrupted as Rifana went to kick the ball and tripped, landing on her knee.

"Rifana!" Nanana shouted and ran up to her. "Are you okay?"

"Y – Yeah… I'm okay…" she muttered as she stood up with a slightly scraped knee.

"Okay… if you're sure. Let's get you inside and get that dressed before you keep going, okay?"

"Right…"

* * *

Diablo and the others arrive in a large, open field with several mounds of various sizes, in the center of it was a series of large hills. As they approached, he recognized a familiar mausoleum poking up out of the ground. "I see it's no longer in swampland."

"Correct," Satan retorted.

"And covered with dirt to help camouflage it better."

"That was Lady Sinoula's idea. Mare handled the actual movement of dirt."

"Good to hear. I'd have given the same order."

"Shall we?" she urged as they approached the structure.

Diablo nodded in affirmation as Alicia followed behind him. "Yes. Once I step inside I should be able to teleport directly to the throne room. Then you may return to your kittens."

Satan's face lit up with a smile as she nodded. "Right!"

The three walked down a large ramp behind the stone pillars leading into the first area of the labyrinth. Upon entry, Diablo immediately felt a small rush of energy. "Good to be back…"

Satan immediately ran off deeper into the labyrinth as Diablo raised his hand, one of the rings on his right hand shimmering before he and Alicia both were in a different location.

Alicia froze in surprise and looked around at the vast hallway, before she looked ahead and saw the Pleiades, Diablo's battle maids.

Voulcosta, the head maid, bowed as soon as she saw him. "Welcome back Lord Momonga."

Alicia looked at him in mild confusion.

"My name is Diablo now," he corrected.

"As you command," she answered with a nod.

"Good." Stepping forward, he swung open the massive double doors. "Honey, I'm home!"

Alicia just stared in mild confusion and curiosity.

Almost instantly a blur of red shot out of the throne room and tackled Diablo with a hug, knocking him to the floor.

"Momonga!" Sinoula cried out desperately as she hugged Diablo close, rubbing her face on his chest.

"S – Sinoula…" he muttered as she gripped him like a vice.

"You're finally here…!" she exclaimed, practically crying at that point.

Alicia just watched the display silently, unsure how to process what she was seeing.

Voulcosta, however, smiled as she watched.

"It's been so long!" Sinoula cried out.

Sighing, Diablo patted her head gently. "I know…"

"I was so scared when it first happened!"

He blinked in slight confusion. "It?"

Looking up from her spot to see his face, she retorted, "Yes. Didn't the same thing happen to you?"

Before answering, he finally became conscious of her immense orbs pressing against his bare stomach. '_… It's so much different when it's real…_' Coughing into his hand lightly, he redirected, "… How about we get up first and then figure out what's going on?"

"Right…"

* * *

Shortly, Diablo and Sinoula sat at a large table next to each other, Voulcosta offering them both drinks as Alicia stood nearby.

Sinoula furrowed her brow in thought as she listened to Diablo explain what has been happening since he arrived. "Summoned? That's not what happened to me at all."

"Oh?"

"I was just sitting there with you and Tabula as the servers went down, and then I was actually there. Er, here, I mean."

"Odd… I was summoned by a Elf and Pantherian."

Sinoula frowned in mild disappointment. "… Were they female?"

He just raised an eyebrow curiously. "Yes? Although I don't see how that's relevant. And Nanana was brought here by a dumb goddess."

Sinoula blinked in surprise, frowning slightly.

"What?"

"So you met Nanana in person?"

"I did. She is very lively for a former ghost."

"She's not anymore?" Sinoula was thoroughly shocked by that revelation.

"Yes. Via said dumb goddess."

"Right…" she wondered as she put a hand on her chin.

"Yeah."

Sighing before smiling, she reiterated, "Anyway, it's good to see you again, Momon –"

Putting up a hand to stop her, he corrected, "I go by the name Diablo now."

"Oh. Got tired of being a flying squirrel?"

He just stared at her for several long, silent seconds.

"What?"

"N – Nothing…" he rebuffed before looking around. "Is Albedo still here?"

Nodding, Sinoula directed him back to the throne room and pointed to the large throne at the rear, with Albedo standing in elegant silence next to it.

"Good." As soon as he said that, however, he noticed Albedo trembling just slightly as she stood. "Albedo?"

"Y – Yes, Lord Mo – ahem, Lord Diablo?" she answered, coughing and correcting herself midsentence.

"Is something the matter?" he asked as he approached her, noticing the twitching get significantly worse.

"N – Not at all. I am merely excited for your return Lord Diablo."

He frowned as he saw her uncomfortable posture. "There is no need to lie."

Smiling, Sinoula gave a simple command. "I give you permission."

Before he had a chance to be confused, Albedo dove from where she stood and grabbed onto Diablo with almost as much as strength as Sinoula.

* * *

**And there you have it! Chapter Twelve! Hopefully everyone enjoyed it, I know I sure enjoyed writing it. If you did, be sure to leave a review and let me know, I appreciate each one. If you were confused, unsure, or just have questions on anything, such as what series different characters are from, leave your queries as a review and I will do my best to address them in the next reviewer response. If you did not enjoy the chapter, review if you please, but do know if all you do is complain you will probably be ignored. Anyway, enough rambling, bye-bye!**


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